Man who sexually assaulted a child released to halfway house

A man with a long history of sexual violence — including the abduction and sexual assault of a young girl in Langley — has been released to a halfway house somewhere in B.C.

The Parole Board of Canada has determined even though Brian Abrosimo, 54, is still assessed as a high risk to reoffend sexually, he has made enough progress to lift his detention order.

Abrosimo hit two girls — aged 11 and 15 — with his van in August, 2004 as they were riding their bicycles in Aldergrove.

He left the older girl on the side of the road and forced the 11-year-old into his vehicle.

Abrosimo gagged her, put a blanket over her head and drove her to another location where she was sexually assaulted.

"The mother of one of the children you hit with your van for the purpose of kidnapping her and sexually assaulting her submitted that the horrors of your actions continue to impact the victim and her family's life," the parole board said.

"The victim has lost her sense of trust and comfort and had to go through counselling and a chiropractor to deal with mental and physical issues."

A month before Abrosimo attacked the two girls, he pulled a gun on a sex trade worker and sexually assaulted her.

Undisclosed location

The parole board won't say where where Abrosimo is living but notes he applied and was accepted at a facility somewhere in the Okanagan.

He was also accepted at a location in the Lower Mainland as a back up.

Abrosimo was denied release at his last parole hearing in 2015, but the board says he has made significant progress since then.

"You currently accept responsibility for your actions and harm caused to the victims as a result of your offending," the documents read.

"You appear to be remorseful and are maintaining a positive attitude to asking for and accepting help."

The documents note that Abrosimo has passed several drug tests and that substance abuse was a trigger for his violent behaviour in the past.

It was also noted that he attacked another inmate in 2013.

Abrosimo was granted "one-chance" statutory release, which means if he gets into trouble, he can't apply for freedom again until the end of his sentence in 2020.

He also has to live under several conditions at the halfway house, including a strict curfew, staying away from girls under the age of 18 and he is not allowed to travel to Langley or Abbotsford.