Edmonton Snapchat predator given 14 years in prison for sexually abusing 8 girls
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Warning: This story contains disturbing details.
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When the woman looked at her phone and saw a police detective was calling, she expected he had a question about work.
“I asked how I could help, and he said, ‘I’m sorry, this is a personal call,'” she said through tears in an Edmonton courtroom as supporters stood beside her, holding her shoulders.
“‘We found pictures of your daughter.’”
The man who sexually abused the woman’s child and seven other Edmonton-area girls — in some cases sexually assaulting them and extorting them to share intimate images — was sentenced to 14 years in prison Friday.
Imesh Ratnayake, 23, pleaded guilty in August to 11 of the 37 charges he faced, admitting he used the social media platform Snapchat to prey on girls as young as 11 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 14-year sentence was a joint submission from Crown and defence, which Court of King’s Bench Justice James Neilson called “a very, very lengthy sentence.”
The mother, who worked with victims of child sex abuse, described her horror at learning what had been done to her daughter, as the stories she encountered at work “flooded into my head uncontrolled.”
“The implicit deal I thought I had with God was that I would serve him through the aims of justice — with my heart, with my soul — and he would keep my little ones safe and protect them,” she said. “Simply put, for a period of time, my entire world felt as if it was falling apart.”
“I felt as if I was going to lose my mind.”
The investigation
Ratnayake was arrested in July 2022 after an investigation by ALERT’s Internet Child Exploitation unit. At the time, police said they discovered “thousands” of videos and images depicting “upwards of potentially 100” additional, unidentified victims.
Eight victims, who lived in a small community outside Edmonton, were ultimately identified.
Ratnayake — who lived with his parents in southwest Edmonton — said he became addicted to pornography during the COVID pandemic and used Snapchat to contact girls for sex. He offered to buy the girls disposable vapes in exchange.
According to an agreed statement of facts, Ratnayake in one case met two of the girls and filmed them performing sex acts on him in his car. One of the girls was 11 years old.
Ratnayake then shared the video with other girls, including their classmates, who he also pushed for sex. In early 2022, one of the girl’s classmates sent her the video. It was shared widely and ultimately came to the attention of school administrators, who reported it to police.
In another case, Ratnayake asked a 13-year-old girl for naked pictures, claiming he was 16, then took screenshots and told the girl he would share the images if she didn’t agree to send more.
Ratnayake also sent the victim the video he took of the girls in the car. She realized they were classmates. Ratnayake threatened to rape her unless she sent him contact info for other girls, which she did before blocking him.
Ratnayake was granted bail but was later sent back to remand for breaching conditions. He has been in jail since December 2022.
‘Shattered’ her world
Prosecutor Sarah Goard-Baker described Ratnayake’s crimes as a “premeditated, sophisticated and prolonged” effort to locate and sexually abuse young girls.
Referencing a pre-sentence report, she accused him of minimizing his conduct by claiming he didn’t know the girls were underage.
“He was completely aware of their ages,” she said. “He manipulated these girls to do his bidding by offering vape products, which he knew they could not access because of their age.”
“He made deliberate choices … and persisted in his efforts to sexualize these children.”
Goard-Baker credited him for his guilty plea, which saved a six-week trial which would have required all eight victims to testify and relive the abuse.
Defence lawyer David Phillips said his client comes from a “very good family” and has no history of trauma in his background.
Ratnayake’s behaviour was the result of “extremely poor decisions” that have brought “great shame” on his family and community, Phillips said. He added Ratnayake and his loved ones have been subject to “online bigotry (and) racism” after news of his charges broke, which he called “unfortunate.”
Phillips noted Ratnayake has no prior criminal record and has read more than 200 books while in remand. With the standard credit of one-and-a-half days for each day spent in remand, Ratnayake has already served just under three years of his sentence.
“I believe he’s an ideal candidate for rehabilitation,” Phillips said.
Ratnayake sat in the prisoner’s box wearing orange and black coveralls. He said he is “truly sorry” to his victims.
“I’ve caused a lot of suffering and I wish I could take it all back, but because I can’t I fully accept any punishment,” he said.
Another mother who filed a victim impact statement said the fact she could not protect her daughter from a “predator” had “shattered” her world.
She also grappled with “the choices he stole from our children.”
“This will taint their lives forever and affect the trajectory of their future, and for that, he does not deserve any mercy.”
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