There had been problems and whispers about Manitoba hockey coach Madison Biluk.
Even after she moved for coaching jobs in Alberta and Saskatchewan, parents and administrators had concerns.
On Monday, Biluk was taken into custody to begin serving a six-year prison sentence for grooming and sexually exploiting a female player on her team. She pleaded guilty in 2024 after being charged in 2023.
According to CBC News , Biluk was in her mid-20s at the time of the assaults. The victim was 15 and 16.
Crime ‘persisted for 16 months’
“The offending was not a one-time lapse in judgment. It persisted for 16 months and was carried out through secrecy, deception, and repeated violations of the victim,” Judge Jerilee Ryle told Winnipeg court.
“Parents, players and coaches rely on the belief that youth sports are safe environments. When a person in a position of authority abuses that trust, the entire community feels the consequences through fear, loss of confidence in institutions and concern that similar harm could happen to other young people.”
Biluk cried as the judge laid out the sentence. As per CBC, she wore shorts, a T-shirt and carried a backpack. Supporters of the pedophile yelled out they loved her.
The judge said evidence proved Biluk groomed the victim, starting with a truckload of personal messages. Ryle said Biluk used her role as coach as well as information she gleaned about the girl’s past trauma and mental health to create an exploitive relationship.
How the grooming escalated
The court earlier heard that Biluk began grooming the teen girl by driving her to hockey practices and skating lessons. But the situation escalated to late-night phone calls, private message and raunchy photos. The discussions also turned to sex and relationships.
But Biluk at one point turned cool and told the traumatized teen they shouldn’t be sexually involved because of their player-coach relationship.
That notion soon passed and Biluk began taking nude videos and photos with the teen. At this point, she also began kissing and touching the victim sexually.
The twisted coach was the subject of a number of concerns from other coaches who claimed her behaviour was out of bounds. There were several warnings but they did not temper Biluk’s ardour.
When contact with the Winnipeg victim ended, Biluk took her stick and skates to Alberta and elsewhere in Manitoba. Again, her conduct raised red flags but no charges were pursued.
What the victim said of the crime
In her victim impact statement read previously in court, the teen said the sexual exploitation has had a “severe” emotional impact on her. She suffers from low self-worth, depression and anxiety. The teen also has trust issues. Combined, they have caused her to lose jobs and relationships.
She has attempted suicide twice.
The former coach’s sentence was the result of a joint recommendation between prosecutors and the defence. She has been assessed as being a moderate to moderate-high risk to reoffend with mid-teenage girls. Biluk must also register as a sex offender.
She is barred from contacting the victim and cannot work or volunteer in a position of trust with people under 16. She is also not allowed to use Snapchat.
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
