Man sentenced to 14 years for historic child sexual abuse in Nelson

Barry Capill, 54, was handed a 14-year-four-month prison sentence by Judge Tony Snell in the Nelson District Court after a jury convicted him on 18 historical child-sex-offence charges, including rape, unlawful sexual connection and multiple indecent assaults on girls under 16. The offences, described as pre-meditated and spanning more than a decade, involved grooming and manipulation of three young victims. The Crown had asked for a 16-year baseline, but the court settled on the shorter term, noting insufficient evidence of genuine remorse.

The judge praised the three survivors for their testimony, imposed a minimum non-parole period of seven years and two months, and ordered Capill’s registration as a child sex offender. Police Detective Sergeant Dan Shields commended the victims’ bravery and reaffirmed the department’s commitment to prosecuting such crimes.