A man dubbed the “balaclava rapist” for committing dozens of sexual assaults against women in Edmonton in the late 1970s and early ’80s will be living in a halfway house in Victoria.
Despite serving three life sentences, Larry Takahashi, 61, has been granted an unescorted temporary absence from jail and will reside in Victoria until Dec. 24, Victoria police said in a public warning sent out Thursday.
“The warning is being issued as VicPD believes that Takahashi poses a significant risk of harm to adult and teenage girls,” department spokesman Const. Mike Russell said in a statement.
After Dec. 24, Takahashi will return to custody and his behaviour during that absence will be reviewed by Corrections Canada and the Parole Board of Canada.
Takahashi has admitted to attacking up to 30 women while living a double life as a model citizen by day and a rapist by night. He would enter apartment buildings and residences at night and rape women while wearing a disguise.
Takahashi was convicted in 1984 of 14 counts of rape, sexual assault with a weapon, aggravated sexual assault and disguise with intent between 1979 and 1983, and sentenced to three concurrent life terms.
Takahashi was eligible for full parole in 1991 and was granted escorted day passes in 1997.
There was an outcry in July 2004 after the national parole board gave Takahashi permission to leave his halfway house unescorted at night and on weekend passes.
In August 2005, Takahashi had his day parole revoked after the parole board was told he had met with a convicted sex offender at Vancouver’s Kitsilano Beach several times, Global News reported at the time.
On Thursday, the Greater Victoria school board was quick to send the warning out to parents and staff.
Takahashi must abide by conditions of his release. He cannot consume any alcohol or other intoxicants, must report all interactions with females immediately to his parole officer and must reside in Victoria and cannot travel north of the Malahat.
Anyone who sees Takahashi violating his conditions should contact local police immediately.
Victoria police received dozens of calls from worried parents this month after they put out a warning that a sex offender who poses a significant risk to young girls is living in the community.
James Douglas Campbell, 63, is living in a halfway house in Victoria. He had previously sexually assaulted a girl on her way to school.
In both cases, Victoria police stressed they had no say in the releases and were issuing the public warnings so that people can be fully informed.
“VicPD had no role in the decision to release Takahashi, nor do we have any input into where he would live,” Russell said. “Although VicPD has serious concerns whenever high-risk offenders are released into our community, we are committed to working with our community partners and the public in order to monitor Takahashi as he completes the remainder of his sentence.”
The National Parole Board considers many factors around an offender’s release, said Kelsey Hymander, the board’s regional manager of conditional release programs, including the person’s risk of reoffending, the goals of their release plan and what kind of support and supervision they will have in the community.
