Reader Tip: This story contains descriptions of rape and sexual assault “I told them to let me go and I asked them why they did what they did to me. And they just laughed. “ A young woman testified in Kelowna court on Wednesday, claiming that four young men sexually assaulted her in a bedroom in the basement of West Kelowna after a night of drinking alcohol in June 2018. The trial of brothers Christian and David Dupas, along with Kole Comin and Trevor Pereverzoff, began last week. The men were between 21-23 years old when the alleged incident occurred. The identity of the victim, referred to as YW, is protected by a publication ban. YW took a stand for the first time on Wednesday to testify for that night. She had met one of the defendants, Comin, at a dating app and attended a party with him in June 2018. After drinking at West Kelowna’s home, the group watched BNA Brewing before returning home in the early hours of the morning. Described her level of intoxication when she returned home as “seven out of 10” YW testified that she “tanned” while sitting on a bed in West Kelowna’s house, watching some people play video games. He described the black out as “not realizing what was happening” and said “I just do not remember anything after that”. She testified that she then woke up in the same bed, without clothes, surrounded by the four defendants. “What is the next thing you remember happening after you woke up in bed with these four men around you?” asked Crown Prosecutor Patricia O’Neil. “I was sexually assaulted; they had sex with me without my consent,” YW replied. She then testified that the four defendants raped her two times in a row, “handling” her, calling her names as “slut” and “prostitute”, while laughing at her. “I just wanted them to stop and I told them to let me go,” YW said. “I asked them five or six times if they would let me go [that] I would not say anything. “ She repeatedly told O’Neil that she never consented to any of the sexual activities with any of the four men. Later that day, YW reported the alleged attack to police and was taken to Kelowna General Hospital, where a sexual assault investigator gathered evidence. YW issued a statement to RCMP Const. Lyndsey Schwindt the same day, who testified at trial last week. The officer told the court she and YW referred to the four men as Hockey Players 1, 2, 3 and 4 during this first interview, as YW did not know the names of all four of them at the time. Pereverzoff played for the Prince George Spruce Kings for part of the 2014-2015 season and was last included in the roster of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas in 2019. Comin played a game with the Merritt Centennials in 2015 and ended his career at youth hockey in Alberta in 2020. Evidence in the lawsuit includes a video taken by YW at the party, which was used to identify some of the suspects, along with a BNA surveillance video, and a video taken by a taxi used by YW after the alleged attack. All four men are charged with sexual assault and unlawful restraint. All pleaded not guilty at the outset. The defense’s examination of YW is expected to begin on Thursday. It is not clear whether any of the defendants intend to testify in their own defense. The trial is set to continue until the end of the month.
