Former student says she was 'groomed' by Saskatoon educator accused of sexual assault
WARNING: Some readers may be troubled by details contained in this story
Aaron Benneweis, 46, has been charged by Saskatoon Police with sexual assault and sexual exploitation of a minor while in a position of trust or authority.
A former student of Legacy Christian Academy — who requested she not be named — says she came forward to SPS in August of 2022 alleging she was involved in several incidents with Benneweis between 2008 and 2013, starting on her 13th birthday.
“He would just like lock eyes with me, but he would smile just like bigger than normal,” she said.
“He wouldn't like look away. It was kind of like 'Hey, he's looking at me a lot.'”
Benneweis is named in the proposed class-action lawsuit involving former students and staff at the school and adjoining Mile Two Church.
The former student says Benneweis was the athletic director while she attended the school.
“He was my first kiss, and I was 14 at that time,” she said.
She says Benneweis, who was in his early thirties at the time, pressured her into keeping their relationship a secret because his family life and career “depended on it."
“We never had sex, but he would make out with me and be like hands all over bodies, all over each other, but I was never like fully naked with him,” she said.
“He had me stripped down to my underwear in his own bedroom in his house, that kind of thing. He had a condom on multiple times.”
She says when she was 17 years old in 2013, she came forward to then-pastor Keith Johnson to discuss what she calls the “most disgusting thing” she’d ever been a part of.
“The very first thing that Keith said after like five seconds of silence was 'Okay, so obviously we have to make a police report because of the nature of the incidences, but will you lie about your age and say that you are older than you were?'"
Attempts by CTV News to reach Johnson have been unssucessful.
She said she agreed because she “just wanted it to be over at that point."
“I was perfectly groomed and conditioned to see myself as a scapegoat,” she said.
“I thought I was coming out to the proper people. I was already conditioned to agree to whatever they wanted me to do.”
She says Benneweis was relocated to Edmonton shortly after.
SPS says Benneweis turned himself in on Tuesday where he was arrested and released on conditions.
In an email, the pastor at Mile Two Church Brien Johnson says due to the legal situation, the church and school will not be giving interviews or comments.
“We will continue to cooperate fully with the legal process and authorities,” he said.
Benneweis is expected to appear in Saskatoon Provincial Court on March 13.
“I am happy that this is finally happening with the proper legal weight behind it because there have been a lot of injustices and a lot of severe stories of abuse for a lot of different people over a lot of years,” said the former student.
“To be honest, Aaron shows up in 95 per cent of my dreams at night to this day because I've never had the proper closure. It's never been dealt with.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.