A high-performance equestrian coach based in Kelowna appeared in B.C. Supreme Court on June 23 for day one of his criminal trial.
Sebastien Devrainne, originally from France, has pleaded not guilty to charges of sexual touching, sexual exploitation and making sexually explicit material available to minors for incidents that are alleged to have occurred as early as 2011.
Crown counsel called its first witness to the stand, a former student of Devrainne. The witness was a minor at the time of the alleged incident and her identity is protected under a publication ban.
Before Justice Chan and a jury, the witness explained that her relationship with her equestrian coach moved beyond that of a student and coach in late 2013 through texts and messages on social media.
By the summer of 2014, the witness testified that Devrainne would send messages commenting on her clothing and asking her what she was wearing underneath. The witness said Devrainne would ask her for proof in the form of photos showing her bra and underwear. Devrainne also sent photos, the witness explained, where he was touching his penis while partially clothed or completely naked.
The relationship became physical shortly after. The witness said Devrainne would hug her and kiss her on the head or grope her, sometimes pulling out her shirt or her waistband to look at her underwear.
When asked by the Crown how she felt about the relationship when it was escalating in 2014, the witness said she felt confused, but that Devrainne often followed up with comments praising her.
The Crown then asked how the witness feels now about the relationship with Devrainne. With tears in her eyes, the witness said, “It’s really sad.”
Crown continued to question its first witness through the afternoon, where the court heard about a series of texts and social media messages from 2023. The witness was no longer a minor at this time and testified that she was still casually involved with Devrainne. However, when the two were messaging about their encounters while the witness was still under the age of 18, Devrainne texted, “Don’t go screenshot that now.”
Devrainne was arrested on the charges in November 2023, although his identity was not made public until the following year.
The accused is not in custody, but has been ordered to have no contact with anyone under the age of 18.
Devrainne was a coach with Devrainne Performance Horses, which operates out of the Der Gemstone Acres facility. He has not coached or competed since 2023.