Convicted serial rapist Richard Mantha is set to be sentenced Thursday. Mantha, now 62, was convicted of six offences in April, including sexually assaulting three women, one of whom he drugged and another he suffocated and assaulted with a weapon. He was also found guilty of uttering threats against a fourth woman. Court heard some of the women were picked up by Mantha and driven to a rural acreage east of Calgary, where they were attacked. Other incidents happened at a Calgary hotel and a local residence. Mantha initially faced 20 charges involving seven women, but the remaining charges were dropped. The trial began in January 2024 and faced several lengthy delays after Mantha fired his previous lawyers and suffered a stroke. He was later found fit to stand trial despite having reduced verbal skills. Crown prosecutors are asking a judge to hand down a 10-to-13-year prison sentence for Mantha. Crown prosecutor Dominique Mathurin said an aggravating factor in her submission is there were unconscious victims while they were sexually assaulted. Meanwhile, Mantha’s lawyer argues 5-to-7-years would be more appropriate. The judge will also have to consider time Mantha has already spent in custody. Mantha is expected to learn his sentence at 9 a.m. in a Calgary courtroom.
