A woman who was the intended prisoner for a confinement room, discovered in an abandoned Pickering, Ont., farmhouse, told a courtroom Monday that she now lives in constant fear.
Images revealed in court show the room, found in the building on Concession Road in northwest Pickering, complete with chains, water and locks. Once inside, there was no way to exit.
It wasn’t until last Wednesday that Gwen Armstrong learned this room was intended for her.
“When I close my eyes at night, they keep me awake. They fill me with such horror that I feel physically ill,” said Armstrong, tearfully reading her victim impact statement in court.
Robert Edwin White, 44, of Oshawa was arrested Feb. 13. White pleaded guilty to a charge of breaking-and-entering with intent to commit a crime. Attempted kidnapping charges against White were dropped. Court heard that White spent two years building the confinement room in the farmhouse.
Court heard that White planned to kidnap Armstrong, who provided support to his ex-wife after their separation.
In court Monday, White blamed Armstrong’s tight relationship with his wife for the breakup of their marriage, saying he did all this for his kids.
White, in the midst of a long and tearful speech, said he is not proud of what he’s done. He never apologized to Armstrong or his ex-wife, Patricia Gallagher in court.
Gallagher also read a victim impact statement in court.
“Everyday I live in fear. I am filled with remorse and guilt for turning to my friends in my time of need,” Gallagher said, in tears.
Gallagher went to her best friend Armstrong for emotional and financial support after leaving White. The man built the confinement room after she left.
“I can’t remember the last time I slept through the night and my husband is plagued with nightmares,” added Armstrong.
A victim impact statement was also submitted by White’s second wife, Dorothy White but she was not present in court. Dorothy said she was “sick to (her) stomach,…couldn’t eat, (she) couldn’t speak in proper sentences, because my mind was racing from one thing to the next…”
The farmhouse, which once stood on property owned by the local airport, was marked for demolition when contractors found the suspicious room in late November. The farmhouse was destroyed two weeks later by a fire considered suspicious by investigators.
White will be sentenced Oct. 4 in an Oshawa court room. The Crown is asking for two years served while the defence is requesting a seven-month sentence.
With files from CTV Toronto's Austin Delaney
