Kenneth Klassen | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1951 (age 72–73) Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | Art dealer |
| Known for | Videotaping himself sexually abusing children |
| Criminal status | In prison |
| Conviction(s) | Child pornography Child sex tourism |
| Criminal penalty | 11 years' imprisonment |
Kenneth Klassen (born 1951) is a Canadian convicted child sex offender from Burnaby, British Columbia.[1]
Starting at the age of 27 or 28, Klassen began sexually abusing children and continued doing so for more than 25 years.[2] He sexually abused fourteen children as a sex tourist in Cambodia and Colombia between December 1998 and March 2002[3] and videotaped himself while doing so.[4] The victims were all less than 14 years old,[5] and they ranged in age to as young as 8 years old.[6]
In 2010, he was convicted of having engaged in child sex tourism and having broken Canada's child pornography laws.[7] Klassen was sentenced to eleven years in prison, which was, at the time, the harshest sentence anyone had ever received for breaking Canada's law against sex tourism.[8] The law came into force thirteen years before Klassen's conviction, and only two other people had been convicted under that law in that time.[9]
An article about Klassen's sex crimes, written by journalist Daphne Bramham for The Vancouver Sun, was nominated for the Beyond Borders media award for exceptional coverage of issues related child sexual exploitation.[10]
References
- ↑ "Sex tourism law upheld". The Vancouver Sun. December 24, 2008. Archived from the original on March 20, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ "Nobody should have to see this stuff". The Vancouver Sun. July 23, 2010. Archived from the original on March 20, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ "B.C. man pleads guilty to 14 sex tourism charges involving underage girls". Truro Daily News. May 21, 2010. Archived from the original on December 6, 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ "'Sex tourist' Kenneth Klassen sentenced to 11 years". The Globe and Mail. July 28, 2010. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ "Bail for sex tourist angers advocate". CBC News. May 27, 2010. Archived from the original on December 12, 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ Tamsyn Burgmann (December 4, 2013). "Sex tourism still thrives in Asia, while sex offender appears in B.C. court". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ "B.C. man gets 11 years for child sex tourism". CBC News. July 28, 2010. Archived from the original on December 13, 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ "Canadian man gets 11 years for sex tourism charges". The Seattle Times. July 28, 2010. Archived from the original on December 12, 2013. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ Ginny Gareau (July 30, 2010). "Sex tourism laws aren't adequate". Times Colonist. Archived from the original on March 20, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2013.
- ↑ "Bramham nominated for print media award". The Vancouver Sun. September 30, 2010. Archived from the original on March 20, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2013.