Manitoba’s highest court has ordered a new trial for a serial online "Romeo" who targets vulnerable single mothers through the Internet – only to terrorize them and their children after earning their trust.
Terrance Moquin, 39, was sentenced to eight years in prison last year after being convicted of assault for his latest in a long list of crimes that span 15 years and two countries.
However, the penalty could have been higher if not for several acquittals stemming from the same case, including more serious charges of assault causing bodily harm and uttering threats.
The Court of Appeal ruled this week the trial judge was wrong to dismiss the more serious charges and has ordered another hearing. No dates have been set.
Moquin was described in court as a predator who wins the hearts of his many victims with a bogus tale of bravado – only to take advantage of their trust in shocking fashion.
He is described as a serial predator who scours the Internet for vulnerable single mothers, wins their hearts with a bogus tale of bravado and then terrorizes them and their children.
Terrance Moquin has left a trail of dashed hopes and devastated victims across Canada and in the United States in a 15-year crime spree. Now a Manitoba Crown attorney wants the justice system to fight back.
"He's sadistic, manipulative and relentless in his offences. He appears to be unstoppable, whether he's on parole, probation, on release or, for that matter, even when he's in jail," prosecutor Cindy Sholdice told provincial court Judge Ken Champagne in calling for a seven-year prison sentence.
"He is capable of extreme physical and mental violence against vulnerable individuals."
Moquin, 38, is expected to learn his fate Tuesday morning after being convicted of his latest crimes, which involve befriending a single mother of two children in an online chat room and then assaulting her when the relationship turned sour in 2007. Moquin was on parole and probation at the time and required to report all relationships to justice officials, which he failed to do.
"Over and over and over again... he manipulated his probation officers. They never suspected a thing," Sholdice said during her sentencing submissions last week.
Like past victims, Moquin told the woman his name was really "Lane Kidd," a former U.S. marine and trained sniper from Texas who had fought in Iraq and moved to western Manitoba to pursue a successful career in the oil and trucking industry. He even proudly showed off his army tattoo.
Moquin's adult criminal history dates back to the early 1990s, when he repeatedly attacked his wife when she confronted him about his penchant for using phone-sex chat lines. He forced the woman to perform oral sex on him while holding a knife to her throat and threatened to kill her in front of their young son, court was told.
Moquin got out of jail in 1998 and quickly befriended a married woman in Red Deer, Alta. He eventually moved into the home -- her husband was on a lengthy work-related stint overseas -- and began to administer "corporal punishment" to her three children, aged 7, 9 and 11.
His most disturbing act involved telling the kids he was going to kill them all and forcing them to choose the means -- a beating, hanging or throat-slitting. Moquin then began to act out the death scenarios, even tying a dog collar around one child's neck and holding him over the side of a staircase, court was told.
He was given two years in prison and three years' probation for those incidents. A parole report claimed Moquin displayed a "callous disregard for the rights of others."
Moquin continued a similar pattern of behaviour following his release, meeting nearly a dozen women in Manitoba through the Internet. Their romances usually ended when Moquin got caught stealing money from them and/or abusing them and their children, court was told.
Moquin received several short jail terms in the early 2000s, usually not for more than about six months at a time.
In 2005, he befriended a married woman from Minot, N.D. and convinced her to come to Winnipeg to post bail for him after one of his arrests for breaching terms of his probation. She left her husband and children, believing Moquin's story that he'd got into a fight while "defending the American flag" with a rude Canadian, court was told. She was intercepted by police who told her the truth about her online lover.
Moquin has spent the past year in custody, and the Crown is seeking up to six more years in prison. Defence lawyer Jody Ostapiw said her client only deserves another year behind bars, saying he can't be given extra punishment just for being a chronic "liar."
A serial "Romeo" who targeted vulnerable single mothers through the Internet -- only to terrorize them and their children -- has been sentenced to eight years in prison.
Terrance Moquin, 38, learned his fate Tuesday after admitting to the latest in a long list of crimes that span 15 years and two countries. Provincial court Judge Ken Champagne gave Moquin a higher sentence than the Crown had sought.
Moquin was described as a predator who wins the hearts of his many victims with a bogus tale of bravado, only to take advantage of their trust. His latest convictions involved befriending a single mother of two children in an online chat room and then assaulting her when the relationship turned sour in 2007. Moquin was on parole and probation at the time and required to report all relationships to justice officials, which he failed to do.
Employing a tactic he used with past victims, Moquin told the woman that his name was Lane Kidd, and he was a former U.S. marine and trained sniper from Texas who had fought in Iraq and moved to western Manitoba to pursue a successful career in the oil and trucking industry. He even proudly showed off his army tattoo.
"He's sadistic, manipulative and relentless in his offences. He appears to be unstoppable, whether he's on parole, probation, on release or, for that matter, even when he's in jail," prosecutor Cindy Sholdice told Champagne in calling for a seven-year sentence.
"He is capable of extreme physical and mental violence against vulnerable individuals."
Moquin's adult criminal history dates back to the early 1990s, when he repeatedly attacked his wife as she confronted him about his penchant for using sex chat lines.
Moquin has spent the past year in custody, for which he was given 18 months of credit. The judge imposed another six-and-a-half years behind bars.
Defence lawyer Jody Ostapiw had called for only another year of custody for her client.
SHE thought she'd met Mr. Right, a charming and caring former U.S. soldier who would nurse her back to health following a serious car crash and be a good role model to her two teenaged boys.
Instead, the man at the other end of the online dating website was a serial con artist with a disturbing criminal history and a penchant for physical and mental torment against single mothers and their children.
Now free from his clutches -- but still living in fear -- the western Manitoba woman spoke out this week as her former lover was given an eight-year prison sentence for his latest crime spree. She wants to warn other women not to fall into the same trap.
"I still have nightmares," the woman said as she recalled a nearly year-long romance with Terrance Moquin that began in 2004. "I thought he was this rich Texan. We clicked. We never should have clicked."
Moquin told the woman, like all his past victims, he was really "Lane Kidd," a former marine and trained sniper who had fought in Iraq and moved to western Manitoba to pursue a successful career in the oil and trucking industry. He even proudly showed off his army tattoo.
The woman had no idea about his real identity or criminal history, which dates back to the early 1990s when he repeatedly attacked his wife. He forced her to perform oral sex on him while holding a knife to her throat and threatened to kill her in front of their young son, court was told.
Moquin got out of jail in 1998 and befriended a married woman in Red Deer, Alta, eventually moving into the home while her husband was away. He told her three children, aged 7, 9 and 11, he was going to kill them all and forced them to choose the means. Moquin then began to act out the death scenarios, court was told. He also hung the family dog from the basement ceiling and beat it in front of the children. He was given two years in prison for those incidents.
Moquin's former girlfriend from Manitoba wasn't surprised to hear of his previous crimes after her relationship with him ended in early 2005.
"He beat my boys until they were black and blue," she said. "They would get hell if they even looked at him the wrong way." Her sons, then 12 and 13, were thrown down a flight of stairs and told they would be killed when they turned 18, she said.
The woman said Moquin also abused and killed several of the dogs and cats living on their rural property, beat her repeatedly and stole nearly $20,000 from her after racking up her credit cards and withdrawing money from her account.
She was heavily medicated at the time following a major car crash and said she couldn't fully appreciate what he was doing to her family.
"He told me 'Oh, I'll take care of you.' I wasn't quick enough to pick up on what I should have picked up on," she said.
The boys eventually told their father about the abuse, and Moquin was arrested, charged and convicted. But he quickly returned to the community -- and to his old ways.
In late 2005, he befriended a married woman from Minot, N.D. and convinced her to come to Winnipeg to post bail for him after one of his arrests for breaching terms of his probation. She left her husband and children, believing Moquin's story that he'd got into a fight while "defending the American flag" with a rude Canadian, court was told. She was intercepted by police who told her the truth about her online lover.
Moquin's latest convictions from this week involve befriending a single mother of two children in an online chat room and then assaulting her when the relationship turned sour in 2007. Moquin was on parole and probation at the time and required to report all relationships to justice officials, which he failed to do.
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