RCMP-killer molested accomplice, letter says

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/06/2009 (5965 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

EDMONTON — One of two men convicted as an accomplice in the massacre of four Mounties in Mayerthorpe, Alta., may have been sexually assaulted by the gunman, James Roszko.

The allegation is contained in a letter the family of Shawn Hennessey has sent to Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Hennessey and his brother-in-law, Dennis Cheeseman, pleaded guilty Jan. 19 to four counts of manslaughter in the deaths of RCMP constables Brock Myrol, Peter Schiemann, Anthony Gordon and Leo Johnston on March 3, 2005.

The two men, from Barrhead, Alta., admitted they gave a gun, ammunition and a ride to Roszko after he had come home to find police had discovered a marijuana grow-operation on his rural property near Mayerthorpe, about 130 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.

Roszko went back to his property, ambushed the Mounties and killed all four constables. He then took his own life.

Hennessey and Cheeseman were charged after an RCMP sting operation. In April 2009, Shawn Hennessey’s father, Barry, wrote to Harper and to Alberta Justice Minister Alison Redford, asking for help for Cheeseman and blasting the police for not treating him as the victim of a sexual assault.

"Dennis Cheeseman may have been molested at gunpoint by James Roszko," Hennessey Sr. wrote.

"He confided in my daughter (Alicia) about this. The several million (dollar) sting operation was launched on Dennis even though they (the RCMP) knew this. He was suicidal at the time and very depressed. If he was female, I’m sure this undercover operation would have ended very fast," he wrote.

During the investigation, Cheeseman told an undercover RCMP officer that Roszko had once stalked him. Cheeseman also hinted that Roszko had molested him at gunpoint. In jail in Drumheller, Alta., Cheeseman has refused to say anything more publicly about his previous allegations.

"Dennis sits in prison with this in his head and his mind failing fast," his father wrote.

Hennessey Sr. believes RCMP murder investigators had tunnel vision, focusing on charging his son Shawn and Cheeseman with murder. He said the RCMP failed to look at the entirety of Roszko and Cheeseman’s relationship, and how it might have affected Cheeseman’s state of mind on the night of March 2, 2005, when Roszko showed up with a gun demanding help from Cheeseman and Hennessey.

"They just wanted a confession of murder," he said.

In response to Hennessey’s letter, Redford said the matter was still under appeal, so it would be inappropriate for her to comment.

"I understand this has been a difficult time for you and your family; however, it is important to allow the legal process to take its course."

Deputy RCMP commissioner Rod Knecht, who closely monitored the investigation, said he was unaware of allegations that Roszko sexually assaulted Cheeseman.

Both Hennessey, 30, and Cheeseman, 25, are appealing both their guilty pleas and their sentences, 15 years for Hennessey, 12 years for Cheeseman.

Barry Hennessey argued that Hennessey and Cheeseman aren’t killers, and it’s unjust to blame them for the acts of the real culprit, Roszko.

The two never knew Roszko was going to kill, and only provided help at the point of a gun, Hennessey Sr. said.

 

— Canwest News Service