THUNDER BAY - A Thunder Bay man who preyed on hundreds of young females over the course of four years by surreptitiously taking video recordings of them in public without their knowledge, leaving many traumatized, has pleaded guilty to numerous charges.
“I cannot overstate how much I hate this man and how much his perversion has changed my life,” one of the women said in a victim impact statement.
Brent Mehagan, 43, appeared before Justice Danalyn MacKinnon in a Thunder Bay Courtroom on Friday where he pleaded guilty to five counts of making child pornography, four counts of voyeurism for sexual purposes, and one count of criminal harassment.
The incidents took place between January 2016 and March 2020 and involved a total of 361 victims, several of whom have not been identified.
Mehagan was arrested on March 16, 2020 after investigators with the Thunder Bay Police Service became aware of an incident at a local gym and swimming pool on March 6, 2020 where three females under the age of 18 observed a man who appeared to be recording them while they were exercising and swimming.
The man had a camera hidden under a sweatshirt and the three females noticed the glare from the lens and took photos of the man, who was later identified as Mehagan.
Following his arrest, police seized several cameras and computers where they discovered more than 4,400 folders with 1,453 video recordings of unaware females in various locations.
The folders were arranged by name and location and the court heard that Mehagan would also learn the names of some victims and downloaded images from their social media profiles.
According to an agreed statement of facts read into the court record, Mehagan utilized hidden pinhole cameras or concealed handheld cameras to record young women in various public locations throughout the city, including malls and restaurants, as well as private locations, such as changing rooms.
One youth was recorded at various times between the age of 12 and 16-years-old.
Several women and youth shared victim impact statements with the court, including the mother of two youth.
“You took my children’s freedom,” she said. “Our daughter’s lives and our family’s lives changed that day. This was a horrific experience. I wish I could take it all away from them and make it disappear. My daughters’ fears are real.”
A youth told the court in a written statement that she was not aware of what happened until being told, which left her feeling confused and scared.
“The knowledge that something like this can happen and that I can be unaware that it can happen has made me feel unsafe,” she said.
Another youth said Mehagan took away her innocence and she is left feeling anxious, restless, and worthless.
“The pain, anger, and fear you brought onto us is indescribable,” she said.
The court also heard contested sentencing submissions from Crown attorney Rob Kozak and defense counsel Brennan Sacevich.
Rozak is calling for a five to six-year penitentiary sentence in a federal institution as a way for the court to strike a balance between denunciation and deterrence for such actions.
“This case does amount to abuse of persons under the age of 18,” Kozak said. “That really focuses you that the sentence has to have the primary considerations of denunciation and deterrence. Mr. Mehagan is the only person before the court but the sentence will be a message to the community that these crimes should be denounced.”
Kozak added that Mehagan was the driving force behind his actions, which he said were concerted over a substantial period of time and left significant impacts on hundreds of victims.
“His camera and recordings allowed him to leer,” Kozak said. “Without the recordings he would have been caught fairly quickly. A leering adult male watching people in their bathing suits and other forms of private areas of human dignity, society would not have put up with it.”
“Overall, the interactions themselves are disturbing and criminal,” Kozak added. “There is a repetitive nature. I suggest to you it is predatory.”
A pre-sentence report and Gladue Report were previously ordered for Mehagan, who is of Ojibway ancestry with connections to Deer Lake First Nation.
Sacevich argued for a sentence of two years less a day to be served in a provincial facility to allow Mehagan to continue treatment options, followed by three years probation.
“There will be a time when he is released into the community,” Sacevich said. “Mindful of the community position in this and the victim impact statements, being placed on the maximum period of probation, not only rehabilitative aspect, but the protection involved with a probationary term can be reasonably achieved in that delicate balancing exercise.”
Mehagan has a previous charge of child pornography from 2009, which Sacevich acknowledged is an aggravating factor, but he argued a rehabilitative sentence is crucial to allow Mehagan to receive the tools necessary to overcome his challenges and seek treatment.
Following his arrest in March 2020, Mehagan was released on bail, which Sacevich argued included restrictive conditions just short of house arrest, given that his surety had health concerns and was unable to accompany him outside of his residence.
“Time spent on restrictive bail conditions should be taken into account,” he said.
When given the opportunity to speak, Mehagan said he feels the gravity of how much he offended each of the victims.
“After listening to everything, I feel like it is still not enough to apologize the way I want to apologize,” he said. “I’m not sure I can relay after listening to everything how sorry I am. It is something that weighs on me. I know after today it doesn’t magically go away and that is because of me.”
Sacevich requested an adjournment before sentencing to allow Mehagan an opportunity to get all his affairs in order before starting a custodial sentence.
The matter was adjourned to May 20, 2022 for Justice MacKinnon’s sentencing decision.
