A former Edmonton taekwondo instructor has been sentenced to seven years in prison for inappropriately touching his young female students in Edmonton.
Justice Donna Read said Saturday that Thomas Lee Innerebner's crimes were "heinous in nature" and she said the "trust of students was egregiously broken."
A jury found the 52-year-old taekwondo instructor guilty of 13 out of 17 sex charges on Dec. 11, 2009.
Mr. Innerebner, who had maintained his innocence, addressed the court, saying he doesn't "have a violent or dangerous bone in my body."
Part of the sentence bans Mr. Innerebner from being around children or in an area where children might be, like a park or playground.
The defence says it will appeal both the conviction and the sentence.
"I think the entire thing's disappointing," said Brian Beresh, Mr. Innerebner's lawyer. "I said at the end of the trial that I think the decision of the jury is perverse and I maintain that view."
The father of one of the young victims said in an impact statement that "Thomas Innerebner has stolen something very dear from my daughter, a child's innocence and in return left her with fear she will never be able to get that back."
Crown prosecutors told the court that Mr. Innerebner "was very cunning, like a predator."
Two women, now aged 25 and 24, testified they were inappropriately touched by Mr. Innerebner during group lessons and said they came forward after a 2007 newspaper article revealed Mr. Innerebner was facing charges.
One of the women began crying as she was asked about it.
"At that point, unfortunately, I realized maybe I wasn't the only one," she said. She told the jury Mr. Innerebner touched her on her breasts and in the crotch area during demonstrations.
The other woman testified Mr. Innerebner touched her breasts and buttocks during stretching exercises. "He gave me the willies up and down - the shivers," she said.
Six of the seven girls testified Mr. Innerebner had put his hands under their clothing and briefly fondled their private parts during group classes while one girl said he had twice violated her when she was 12 and at his house doing chores for him.