High-risk offender released last year charged with harassment, death threats

A man Halifax police have described as a high risk to reoffend is facing several new charges in relation to a series of disturbances at a woman's home in Dartmouth, N.S.

Gamon Jay Leacock, 49, was released from prison in October after he completed a 14-year sentence for a series of crimes, including a violent sexual assault against a teenager and her boyfriend in 2009.

At the time of his release, Halifax police warned the public that Leacock was living in the Halifax area.

Leacock is now facing a dozen charges related to several alleged incidents between October and December last year, Halifax Regional Police say in a news release.

The release says a man broke into the woman's home on a number of occasions and threatened to rob her. Halifax police learned about the incidents on Dec. 28, 2023.

Leacock was scheduled to appear in court on Friday to face several charges that include extortion, death threats, criminal harassment, theft under $5,000, four counts of possession of a stolen credit card, and being unlawful in a dwelling. 

Violent history

Leacock was convicted of several charges, including forcible confinement, sexual assault with a weapon, uttering threats and administering a noxious substance in relation to the 2009 incident.

At his trial, the court heard that Leacock entered the apartment on the evening of Aug. 16, 2009, and assaulted a 19-year-old man, striking him in the face.

Leacock then tied the man's hands with electrical cords. He then ordered the man's 18-year-old girlfriend into the bedroom, where he raped her while holding a knife to her back.

The court found the assault lasted for about four hours. At one point, Leacock ordered the pair to have sex while he watched.

After the assaults, Leacock made his victims smoke crack cocaine with him, then stole the woman's bank card to withdraw $200 from her account to buy more drugs. The pair managed to escape and police were called.

At his trial, Leacock claimed he had consensual sex with the woman, and denied all the other allegations. But the judge ruled Leacock's evidence was not credible.

2021 parole board assessment

The last time he was assessed by the Parole Board of Canada was in November 2021. The board decided at that time that Leacock remained too high a risk to be released from prison.

The board cited a psychological assessment from 2019 that found he was at a very high risk of reoffending sexually. It also noted that Leacock's violent and aggressive behaviour had continued while he was behind bars.

"You have shown lasting difficulties controlling your violent and sexual impulses," the board wrote.

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