Daughter of Val-des-Monts, Que., man convicted of incest says 'mountain' lifted
Warning: the following story concerning the trial of a man facing incest and sexual assault charges contains descriptions of events some readers may find deeply disturbing.
A jury found Jacques Roger Lesage, 79, of Val-des-Monts, Que., guilty on Friday of two charges of incest in relation to his daughter, 53-year-old Lucie Lesage, as well as one count of incest and one count of indecent assault in relation to a second daughter, 49-year-old Nathalie Lesage.
Lucie Lesage had told the court she was subjected to more than 30 years of sexual abuse and terror at her father's hands. She said he first raped her when she was eight years old, and by age 13 she had become pregnant with his child — the first of three she would bear him.
She said that coming forward in 2014 and testifying at the trial felt like removing a weight from her shoulders.
"Listen, for me in the beginning, it was a mountain," she told reporters in French. "It was something I was very afraid of, but if there's something I can say to other victims, do it.
"As you go along and tell the story, you're relieved at the same time of all that pain. So don't hesitate. Don't hesitate to denounce those who are trying to keep [their abuse] a secret."
Lesage, a father of eight, was arrested and charged in 2014 after Lucie Lesage came forward.
After she went to police, two other sisters — Nathalie Lesage and 45-year-old Chantal Knippenberg — also came forward with their stories of sexual abuse.
But while he was found guilty of incest with two of his daughters, he was found not guilty of charges related to Knippenberg.
2 other sisters came forward
Nathalie Lesage told the court her father first molested her when she was five years old, while Knippenberg said her abuse began when she was about seven years old.
All three women spoke of how their father terrorized their mother and the family, and that they lived in fear of being cast out of their home.
They told the court their father said that if they told anyone — including their mother — about the sexual abuse, the police would come and take them away from the house.
The three sisters won the right during the trial to have a publication ban on their names lifted, and in so doing allow for the publication of their father's name.
Sisters say they are united for rest of lives
Speaking at the trial in his own defence, Jacques Lesage admitted to sexually abusing Lucie Lesage but said he didn't believe at the time she was his daughter, suggesting he thought she was his wife's daughter from an extra-marital affair.
He denied the allegations his two other daughters brought forward, saying he had never been alone with them.
Upon hearing the verdict, Knippenberg rose from her seat in tears and left the courtroom. When court adjourned, her sisters went to console her.
Outside the courtroom, Knippenberg said she had no regrets and that she was proud of her sisters for coming forward first to denounce their father.
Nathalie Lesage said she that, like her sister, she was disappointed the jury did not find their father guilty of all of the charges.
"Yes, we maybe lost something," she said in French. "But we found three sisters, united for at least for the rest of our lives. So in the end, we gained more."
Lesage has been in jail since his arrest in 2014.
His sentencing hearing is expected to begin on Tuesday, when his daughters will likely submit victim impact statements. A charge of incest carries a maximum sentence of 14 years.
