N.S. man persuaded woman to perform sex acts, directed teenagers to beat homeless man

A Nova Scotia man with a lengthy criminal history has pleaded guilty to persuading a 19-year-old woman to perform sexual acts, directing teenage boys to beat a young homeless man and threatening to kill a woman and her children, among other charges.

In January 2020, Morgan MacDonald was charged with 31 offences, including human trafficking, luring a child and receiving a material benefit from sexual services.

His Nova Scotia Supreme Court trial was expected to begin this week in Truro, N.S. But MacDonald pleaded guilty to seven charges during a court appearance last week. They are:

• Procuring a person to offer or provide sexual services for consideration.
• Theft.
• Trafficking cocaine and MDMA.
• Assault.
• Two counts of break and enter.
• Uttering threats.

In a recording of the proceedings, Justice Jeffrey Hunt asked the 33-year-old man if he understood that he was waiving his right to a trial and that he was acknowledging he is guilty of the offences.

"Yes, sir," MacDonald responded.

He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 25. 

A Crown lawyer indicated an intention to have the other charges dismissed at the conclusion of the sentencing hearing.

MacDonald arranged sexual 'calls' 

According to an agreed statement of facts, most of the offences occurred between June and September 2019, while MacDonald was on the run from police while on parole.

In July 2019, MacDonald met who the document describes as a transgender woman and offered to connect her with "individuals seeking sexual services for consideration."

The woman — whose identity is protected by a publication ban and was 19 and 20 years old at the time of the offences — accepted the offer, and MacDonald started arranging "calls" for her.

The woman's 17-year-old girlfriend took photos of her in her bra and underwear to be used in ads for sexual services, which were posted by MacDonald. He would communicate with the individuals who responded to the ads and negotiated the terms, including the price and location.

"For each call, [MacDonald] directed [the woman] to charge $300 for her to initially sit in the car with the individuals. After that, the price was $200 per sexual service," the agreed statement of facts said, adding the majority of the meetings took place at a motel in Dartmouth.

The statement said the woman had to pay MacDonald up to 40 per cent of the total payment, and if she did not, she had to pay him double the fee after her next call.

She went on 10 to 15 calls for MacDonald.

"During the offence period, [the woman] was fearful of the accused as he made threatening comments to her and around her," the statement said. "Some of these comments referred to him owning firearms and belonging to a gang."

The Millbrook Bloods

The statement said in early summer 2019, MacDonald recruited a number of young people — including two 15-year-old boys and a 14-year-old boy — to be in a gang, which he referred to as a family dubbed the "Millbrook Bloods."

He directed them to wear red bandanas to signify they were part of the gang, and coerced them to move back and forth between Truro and Dartmouth, "exercising control over them wherever they went."

The statement said he did this by using threats and intimidation and providing drugs, alcohol and money.

"[MacDonald] regularly spoke of owning guns and carried bear mace with him," it said. "[MacDonald] told the above-noted males and several others that he had previously murdered people and was affiliated with a gang in Toronto."

The statement said in July 2019, MacDonald stole $40, an iPhone and a pack of cigarettes from a 23-year-old homeless man he had previously had a dispute with.

He later directed several people to beat up the same person, which they did. The assault in Victoria Park was captured on video. MacDonald did not participate, but directed it.

'I'm going to kill you and all your kids'

On Aug. 20, 2019, the statement of facts details that MacDonald went to a home in Truro looking to harm an 18-year-old man. A woman at the home told him to leave her property.

"The accused responded by saying, 'I'm coming back. I'm going to bring guns. I'm going to kill you and all your kids. I will bring my Bloods,'" reads the statement, adding the woman took the threat seriously and reported it to police.

MacDonald was released from a maximum security prison in New Brunswick in May 2019. He was ordered to serve the rest of a four-year sentence at a halfway house in Saint John. 

But he never showed up at the halfway house, and ended up in Truro, N.S, setting in motion a summer of fear and frustration for parents and teens in the town.

Over the next four months — while at large and despite parents raising the alarm to authorities — MacDonald racked up dozens of criminal charges, seven of which he pleaded guilty to last week.

Parents who spoke to CBC News said RCMP and Truro Police Service did not take their concerns about MacDonald seriously. 

They believe the information they provided to police was met with skepticism and excuses, and they felt powerless as MacDonald continued to allegedly prey on youth.

At the time, RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jennifer Clarke said police did receive several pieces of information from concerned parents about MacDonald's location, some of which helped lead to his arrest on Sept. 23, 2019. 

Prior convictions

A Crown lawyer told the court that victim impact statements are expected to be filed as part of the sentencing hearing.

MacDonald has a criminal history in Nova Scotia that dates back to 2013, when he and four accomplices robbed a taxi driver at knife point in Dartmouth. 

Prior to that, MacDonald has convictions for robbery and assault in northeastern Ontario dating back to 2009.