Ferndale man pleads guilty to recording himself sexually assaulting a small child in 2017
A Ferndale man has pleaded guilty to video recording himself sexually assaulting an 8-year-old girl in 2017.
Bruce David Vanderwoude, 33, pleaded guilty Dec. 20 in Whatcom County Superior Court to first-degree rape of a child, according to court records.
Vanderwoude’s sentencing has tentatively been scheduled for Feb. 24, 2022.
Before his sentencing, a pre-sentencing investigation report and assessment will be done by the Washington State Department of Corrections. Vanderwoude is currently incarcerated in the Whatcom County Jail Work Center pending his sentencing, court and jail records show.
Vanderwoude was arrested in Florida in February 2019 after a nationwide warrant for his arrest was issued in January of that year.
In November 2018, Ferndale police received a faxed referral from Child Protective Services in Colorado Springs where a witness had called to report the sexual assault of a child. When a Ferndale detective spoke with the witness, the witness said she had allowed Vanderwoude to move into her Colorado Springs home three weeks before she filed the report, according to court records.
While the woman was packing up her home to move out, the witness’s son found and brought her electronic storage devices belonging to Vanderwoude. When the woman looked on the storage devices, she found a video of Vanderwoude sexually assaulting a young female child while she slept, court records state.
The witness also found several media cards belonging to Vanderwoude that contained videos of children taking showers, the records state.
When the witness confronted Vanderwoude and his mother about the videos, Vanderwoude denied it was him and tried to destroy the electronic storage devices. Vanderwoude’s mother bought him a plane ticket from Colorado to Miami, Florida, the court records state.
The electronic storage devices were turned over to the Ferndale Police Department. Detectives found 11 images and 18 videos that had child pornography on them and showed Vanderwoude sexually assaulting the 8-year-old girl, the records state.
A separate witness identified the child in the video and the location of the assault as Vanderwoude’s parents’ home in Whatcom County, court records state.
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 or https://www.lummi-nsn.gov/Website.php?PageID=399.
▪ Tl’ils Ta’á’altha Victims of Crime: 360-325-3310 or nooksacktribe.org/departments/youth-family-services/tlils-taaaltha-victims-of-crime-program/.
▪ 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.
