Attack by cable installer leaves Halifax woman feeling ‘completely broken’

A former cable TV technician has been sentenced to a suspended sentence of two years’ probation for assaulting a woman by touching her without her consent after letting him into her Halifax mansion in October 2020.

Renaldo Antonio Lewis, 36, of Eastern Passage was originally charged with assault but pleaded guilty in Halifax Provincial Court to the assault charge on the day of the trial.

Lewis was recently sentenced by Judge Gregory Lenehan, who accepted a joint recommendation from attorneys.

Lenehan ordered Lewis to have no contact with the victim during his probation, to stay away from her home, not to own any guns, and to participate in any counseling his sentencing officer deemed necessary.

“There is a certain vulnerability that everyone has when they let traffickers into their homes,” the judge said. “They trust the traffickers to do their thing and nothing else.”

The victim’s identity is protected by a publication ban. Crown attorney Lauren Lindsay told the court that the woman was in the green space behind her rental apartment on Oct. 22, 2020, when she came across Lewis, who was wearing what appeared to her to be a Bell Aliant uniform. She said they had discussed whether her unit would be suitable for Bell Fibe installation.

About half an hour later, Lewis knocked on the door of the woman’s apartment and asked to view the residence. She showed him the unit, including the upstairs, and he told her he thought Fibe would work for her.

As they made their way to the main floor, they stopped on a landing to talk. After the woman asked how she could thank him, he suggested a hug.

Although the woman was “a little uncomfortable” with that suggestion, she agreed, and there was a consensual hug, Lindsay said.

As they descended the stairs, Lewis touched the woman’s buttocks and upper body. Scared and wanting Lewis to leave the house, she told him that her husband would be home any minute.

Lewis put his shoes back on and left moments later. The woman called Bell Aliant and was told to contact the police.

Police went to the woman’s residence and took a statement from her. Their investigation revealed that Lewis was an employee of Data Wiring Solutions, a subcontractor who worked for Bell.

Lewis was arrested a few days later and charged with assault.

Victim impact statement

In an impact statement, the victim said she has gained 20 pounds since the incident because she spends her time alone in the house, too scared to go for a walk alone.

“I’m afraid to go outside,” she said. “I’m afraid to have a window open. I can’t work, so I’m completely dependent on social assistance.

“I am not the same person I used to be because I used to be very inviting. … I would accept anyone into my house, and I would talk to anyone who passed by my house, anyone who was in my yard, and now I’m just a containment because I’m terrified of everything.

“I’m afraid if I talk to a guy they’ll get the wrong idea and think my friendship is a ticket to do or say whatever they want, and I don’t want that to happen again.”

She said she feels “completely broken.”

“I don’t want to feel that way anymore, and I don’t want him to make anyone else feel that way,” she said. “I would really like him to go for counseling to learn about these things from a professional so he can apply them in his own life and never, ever do this to another woman.

“Just because a woman is kind and nice doesn’t mean I want more than friendship. I grew up in Cape Breton in a very comfortable rural family oriented safe environment. I didn’t realize that being nice, kind and sweet would ever put me in this kind of situation.”

Lindsay said the Crown was “both giving up and getting something in return in this deal. In that sense it is a quid pro quo.”

She said the probation will help Lewis “address the issue that led to this attack and make sure it doesn’t happen again. It is clear that (what) the Crown is concerned about in these circumstances.”

‘Extremely Bad Judgment’

Lawyer Billy Sparks said Lewis, a father of two teenagers, was having relationship problems with a previous partner at the time of the incident. Sparks said his client lost his job at Data Wiring Solutions and is now working in a call center.

The lawyer also noted that Lewis’s name was in the media after police announced the charges in November 2020.

“Mr. Lewis showed extremely poor judgment on that day by interacting with (the victim),” Sparks said. “He was in a position of trust. … Mr. Lewis openly admits that he betrayed that trust and that his behavior was unacceptable.”

Asked if he had anything to say, Lewis replied, “I’m sorry it happened.”

Lenehan said he was confident that the recommended probation, along with the collateral consequences that “befallen” Lewis, will adequately indict his actions and deter him and others.