Former Winnipeg priest sentenced to 15 months for sexually abusing teenage boy

A former Roman Catholic priest who sexually abused a 15-year-old boy almost four decades ago has been sentenced to 15 months in jail.

Roland Lanoie, 72, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault earlier this month.

His jail sentence will be followed by two years of supervised probation, during which time he must not work or volunteer in a position of trust involving children, a recommendation made by Crown attorney Dayna Queau-Guzzi.

At Lanoie's sentencing on Thursday, provincial court Judge Ryan Rolston talked about the importance of a sentence that reflects the seriousness of the offence and the responsibility of the convicted person. The multiple sexual assaults suffered by the victim resulted in trauma, Rolston said.

Police launched an investigation into Lanoie in early 2018 after a man told them he was the victim of a series of sexual assaults from 1982 to 1988.

Lanoie, who is retired now, was working as an ordained priest, holding various positions within the Archdiocese of St. Boniface, at the time of the offences, police said at the time.

The abuse started when the boy was a youth and resident student at the St. Boniface Minor Seminary, but continued after Lanoie left, court was told.

Archdiocese extends 'sincere regrets'

The man reported the incidents to the Archdiocese of St. Boniface in December 2016, and Lanoie resigned the following month following an investigation by officials in the archdiocese.

That investigation continued, and in December 2017, Archbishop Albert LeGatt permanently barred Lanoie from the archdiocese offices and from performing any public ministry, after seeking advice from the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. 

In a statement on Thursday, the archdiocese said Lanoie had also been temporarily suspended in March 2017, and had not been allowed to exercise his public ministry since then.

The man went to the police with his complaint in spring 2018, and Lanoie was arrested and charged that October.

Spokesperson Richard Fréchette said the archdiocese has created an education program for all priests, seminarians, deacons, employees and volunteers who work with vulnerable people to make sure they know how to identify and prevent abuse.

"To the victim, we would like to extend our sincere regrets," Fréchette said. "We really want to be there for the victim. We feel his suffering and his family as well."