A brother of the man acquitted in the swarming death of Aaron Webster should be sentenced to between 15 and 18 years for taking part in the gang-rape of a young woman during a violent Burnaby home invasion, a prosecutor said Monday.
In May, Justin Derek Rao was found guilty of being among a group of four young men who broke into a home on Clinton Street on Dec. 7, 2008.
Rao, whose brother Danny was found not guilty in the 2001 slaying of Webster in Stanley Park, was the leader of the group who sexually assaulted a 24-year-old woman, said Crown counsel Dawn Boblin.
Rao's co-accused, Jason Robert MacFadden, had earlier pleaded guilty to his role in the crime.
During sentencing submissions Monday, Boblin told B.C. Supreme Court Justice Mary Humphries that three of the four men - including Rao and MacFadden - gang-raped the victim in a "prolonged" and "degrading" attack.
The victim's two male relatives were held at knifepoint during the assault. Laptops, cellphones and money was stolen by the accused.
At trial, a third brother, Daniel Vicky Rao, testified that he, not Justin, had committed the sexual assault, but the judge rejected his testimony.
Boblin said that Justin Rao, who has no prior record, should be sentenced at the high end of the range between 15 and 18 years in prison.
She said MacFadden, who entered his guilty plea on the first day of trial, should be sentenced to 10 years.
After crediting the two men for pre-sentence custody, Rao's effective sentence would be 10 to 12 years and MacFadden's four years, she said.
Howard Smith, MacFadden's lawyer, said six to seven years would be appropriate.
David Tarnow, Rao's lawyer, said five and eight years would be appropriate for his client.
The judge reserved sentencing to June 22.
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