A sexual predator with history of sex offenses has been sentenced for voyeurism after he was caught using the “gender-neutral” changing room of a local recreation center to watch women undress.
Mark Istephan, 52, was sentenced to 18 months in prison after he was caught trying to watch a woman showering at a community pool on Vancouver Island.
Istephan was previously convicted for the attempted kidnapping of a 13-year-old girl.
A city in Ontario, Canada is set to build a new recreation center featuring a glass-walled "universal gender neutral common area" instead of male-female changing rooms.
— REDUXX (@ReduxxMag) March 4, 2024
One woman who expressed concerns about the plan was thrown out of a city council meeting last week. pic.twitter.com/mEcgoHjQoo
Reduxx reported:
During court proceedings, Western Communities provincial court Judge Ted Gouge heard that the incident occurred on the morning of May 4, 2023, at the Sooke and Electoral Area Parks and Recreation Commission (SEAPARC). The SEAPARC is a designated “LGBTQI+ Safe Space” and highlights that it prioritizes inclusivity and “does not tolerate violence, bullying, or hate speech towards the LGBTQI+ community.”
The victim, identified only as Z.R. in court documents, had been swimming at the community centre and returned to the gender-neutral change room before showering in a private cubicle. As she was getting dressed, she saw the shadow of a man in the next cubicle who appeared to be trying to watch her through the gap between the bottom of the cubicle divider and the floor.
Z.R. ran to the reception desk and informed staff, who promptly called police and Istephan was arrested. In his decision, Judge Gouge noted that Z.R. was left traumatized by the experience, and continues to suffer anxiety as a result, specifically when using public recreation facilities.
During the hearing, Istephan refused to participate in a psychological assessment, which the judge called “unique.”
Istephan claimed he did not have any mental health issues and declined to pre-sentence interview with a forensic psychologist.
The court heard that in 2001, Istephan attempted to kidnap a 13-year-old girl at a bus stop.
He was convicted of attempted kidnapping and received a conditional sentence of 18 months.
Almost six years later, in 2007, Istephan was convicted of public indecency when he was arrested for masturbating on a lakeside pier in Victoria.
He was jailed for 60 days with three years of probation.
According to a 2018 Port Moody Police release, Stephanie briefly went missing after being discharged from Eagle Ridge Hospital.
Since his first conviction for attempted kidnapping in 2001, he has been further convicted of breach of probation for failing to complete a sex offender counseling program , and for a breach of probation in 2014 for being within 200 meters of a school.
The incident in Sooke further accentuates the concerns surrounding the safety of “gender-neutral” restrooms.
The city of Cambridge, Ontario, recently sparked outrage by announcing plans to eliminate traditional male-female changing rooms.
The plans would see a glass-walled “universal gender-neutral common area” established where males and females would share a common space and cubicles.
The Mayor of Cambridge had a woman removed from a city council meeting for expressing her worries about the proposal.
READ: Growing Number of Liberals Now Identify as ‘Gender Season’
