CALGARY — Two brothers with fetal alcohol disorder who repeatedly raped a teenage girl they abducted at a bus stop have been sentenced to 12 years each in prison.
Corey and Cody Manyshots, both in their 20s, pleaded guilty in October 2015 to sexual assault, kidnapping, uttering threats and robbery.
Court heard the brothers abducted a 17-year-old girl from a bus stop in Calgary's northeast in November 2014.
They sexually assaulted her in an alley and then took her to their home where they raped her another 15 times over eight hours.
The Grade 12 student was able to escape a day later when they fell asleep. Police were contacted by her family when she made it home.
Judge Terry Semenuk gave the brothers credit for time served, so they face less than eight more years behind bars.
They were sent for additional psychiatric testing last June to determine if they were criminally responsible for their actions. Tests revealed that both suffer from severe fetal alcohol syndrome, have poor cognitive function and struggle with mental illness.
At a sentencing hearing last fall, lawyers for the brothers argued that their clients should spend years in prison so they could get help for their issues.
"These two men fell through the cracks of life,'' Cody's lawyer, Alain Hepner, said at the time. "They didn't stand a chance from the minute they were born."
Reports presented as evidence said the two should be in a structured, supervised environment where their unique needs could be addressed.
Hepner told the hearing that there is no treatment for fetal alcohol syndrome, but he hoped there was a way the brothers could get the support they need to lead a meaningful life once they get out of prison.
The Crown argued there was a relatively high risk the two would reoffend and pointed out that they show little empathy for the victim.
Having the brothers stay voluntarily at a residential facility following their sentence should not be seen as a solution, prosecutor Jonathan Hak said.
Hepner presented a statement on behalf of his client, who he said cannot read, in which he said he was sorry for causing pain to the victim and that he wanted to get counselling.
The defendants' mother, Angelina Manyshots, also addressed court at the hearing.
"I really love my sons,'' she said. "I'll do everything I can to help them.''
