Whatcom man receives 4-year sentence for repeatedly raping sixth-grade girl
A 29-year-old man was sentenced to four years in prison on Friday, Nov. 20, after he pleaded guilty to repeatedly raping a sixth-grade girl at various locations around the Lummi reservation in Whatcom County.
U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran announced Gideon Thomas Bewley’s sentencing, which occurred in U.S. District Court in Seattle, in a news release.
“This is a very painful case. The victim was so vulnerable … this was an aggressive act by a person almost twice the age of a 12-year-old girl,” U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik said during the sentencing hearing.
Bewley was 23 years old at the time of the sexual assaults, the release states.
According to records, which were filed in 2014 and 2015, Bewley sexually assaulted the victim at various locations around the Lummi Nation’s reservation and told the victim, who had just finished sixth grade, that he would harm her if she told anyone.
The victim first told a school counselor about the attacks in 2014, according to the release, and the counselor notified law enforcement, but the victim was too scared to discuss it with police investigators.
Child Protective Services was notified in 2016, the release stated, and during a forensic interview arranged by the Lummi Police Department, the victim disclosed the sexual abuse.
Bewley was arrested by Lummi police in December 2018 and indicted in January 2019, according to the release, before he pleaded guilty in August 2019.
A spokesperson for the Lummi Nation’s victim services told the court during Friday’s sentencing hearing that the victim has “dealt with a lot and is working on her healing,” the release states.
In addition to serving time in prison, Bewley must register as a sex offender once he is released and will be placed on probation for five years.
Resources
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or sexual assault, you can contact the following local resources for free, confidential support:
▪ Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Services: 24-hour Help Line: 360-715-1563, Email: info@dvsas.org.
▪ Lummi Victims of Crime: 360-312-2015.
▪ Bellingham Police: You can call anonymously at 360-778-8611, or go online at cob.org/tips.
▪ WWU Consultation and Sexual Assault Support Survivor Advocacy Services: 360-650-3700 or wp.wwu.edu/sexualviolence/.
▪ Brigid Collins Family Support Center: 360-734-4616, brigidcollins.org.
