Armed Forces employee sentenced to prison for sexual assault

Warning: This story contains graphic details related to sexual assault

A 23-year-old man who worked for the Armed Forces at the naval base in Esquimalt, B.C., just west of Victoria, has been sentenced to more than three years in prison for a violent sexual assault in 2022.

In a ruling posted earlier this week, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Carla L. Forth described Hayden Chokrev-Evans as "predatory" and said his actions were "vile, violent, degrading and harmful to the victim," who he met on a dating app. 

Forth wrote that the sexual assault was "deeply traumatizing" for the victim, whose identity is protected under a court-ordered publication ban.

As well as his jail sentence, Chokrev-Evans must also provide DNA samples, register with the federal Sex Offender Registry and is prohibited from owning a firearm for 10 years. 

CBC News has contacted the Armed Forces for comment. A spokesperson for the Department of National Defence told CHEK News that Chokrev-Evans was no longer a member of the Armed Forces as of May 15, 2024.

'All he wanted was "quick sex"'

According to the judgment, Chokrev-Evans met the victim, known only as S.D., on the dating app Tinder. 

Chokrev-Evans was working at CFB Esquimalt as a marine technician and S.D. was a resident of Port Alberni, 135 kilometres northwest of Victoria.

They first agreed to meet in Nanaimo in October 2022, and decided S.D. would visit Chokrev-Evans in Victoria the following weekend. 

"Mr. Chokrev-Evans agrees that he misled S.D. into believing that he was interested in a long-term relationship when all he wanted was 'quick sex,'" the judgment says. 

"S.D. was hopeful that this was the start of a long-term relationship."

When S.D. arrived at the base, the pair first hung out in Chokrev-Evans's dorm watching three episodes of a Netflix series about Jeffery Dahmer, the judgment said, before he left to work out in the gym. 

When he returned, according to the judgment, Chokrev-Evans began to violently sexually assault S.D. The assault included forcing his penis into her mouth, inserting his penis into her vagina while choking her and bashing her head into the wall. He did not use a condom. 

Forth said S.D. felt like she was losing consciousness and said nothing during the assault. 

Afterwards, Chokrev-Evans showed her photos of naked women he had had sex with. Forth says S.D. did not leave until the next morning because she was afraid. 

'Not the same person she was'

S.D. returned to work with bruising on her neck and forearm, and a lump on her head. The judgment says for about a week it hurt when she spoke and it was difficult to breathe and swallow. 

On Oct. 17, she returned to work, where "she was crying, and was told to go to the hospital," the judgment says.  

"She did and a rape kit was performed. She reported what had happened to the police."

The victim also became depressed, couldn't eat and began to self-harm, Forth wrote. 

"S.D. is not the same person she was when she met Mr. Chokrev-Evans," the judgment said.

"She is not responsible in any way for what Mr. Chokrev-Evans did to her. She deserved to be treated with respect and dignity."

'No feelings'

According to the judgment, Chokrev-Evans grew up in Ontario in a home free of abuse and substance misuse. He does not have any substance-use issues, had a large peer group and had no prior interaction with the justice system. 

"Mr. Chokrev-Evans reports that he is only attracted to women around the same age as him and that he prefers 'blonde-haired and skinny women,'" Forth wrote. 

"When asked what steps he has taken to ensure a similar offence will not occur in the future, he replied that 'he will stop having sexual interactions with people that he is not attracted to.'"

Chokrev-Evans told the judge he has "no feelings" about the events that led to his conviction, and he doesn't believe he would benefit from counselling. 

"I am concerned that with his lack of remorse and insight, his prospects for rehabilitation in the future are very low," Forth wrote.

For sexual assault involving choking, the maximum sentence is 14 years.

Forth sentenced Chokrev-Evans to three years and 108 days, including time served, and ordered him to comply with the sex offender registry for 20 years.