Toronto man who kidnapped woman and sexually assaulted her at gunpoint gets 13 years in prison

A Toronto man who helped kidnap a Vaughan woman at gunpoint while his accomplice shot at a “Good Samaritan” who tried to intervene, is now facing a 13-year prison sentence.

Ontario’s Court of Justice heard Keyron Moore forced his kidnapping victim into giving him oral sex with a pistol against her skull, then stood by and watched while others tortured her.

A judge convicted Moore this past spring for confining the woman, who had been standing outside a Thornhill restaurant on Nov. 1, 2022, when Moore’s accomplice forced her into a grey sport utility vehicle just after 11 p.m.

Moore was behind the wheel, but at one point during the kidnapping, he got into the back of the vehicle and forced the woman to perform oral sex on him. “It was accompanied by threats to shoot her, and the firearm was held to her head,” Justice Michael Townsend wrote in a recent decision.

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Moore, a 39-year-old permanent resident of Canada from Grenada, was also convicted of using a gun in the kidnapping, sexually assaulting his victim while carrying it, and recklessly discharging a firearm.

The other kidnapper, who was also armed but was never caught, was referred to as “Orange Hoodie Guy” or OHG in court documents.

“Knowing what was likely to happen, and being armed himself, Mr. Moore is just as responsible for the shooting at the Good Samaritan as was OHG, the one who pulled the trigger,” Townsend said.

Moore and his accomplice drove around with the terrified woman, identified only as A.T. in court documents, for hours before taking her to an address in Barrie. During that ride, her hands and mouth were bound at times with duct tape.

“When at the address in Barrie, Mr. Moore stood by and at times watched as A.T. was stripped naked, tied to a chair in the garage, and physically assaulted by a number of other men. Her hands and feet were ‘smashed’ with a hammer, her legs were hit with the same hammer, her hair was burnt, and at one point a syringe with what is thought to have been heroin was dragged up and down her arm,” Townsend said.

“All while this was happening Mr. Moore either stood by and watched, left the garage to go smoke, or was indifferent as to what was happening to A.T. in the garage. At no time in the hours long interaction with A.T. did Mr. Moore ever tell her she was free to go, assist in her escape, attempt to minimize the physical harm that was done to A.T., or attempt to get A.T. some help.”

Moore and his associates held the woman captive “for close to 12 hours before she was able to escape,” said the judge. “Most of that time she was in the sole presence of Mr. Moore.”

York Regional Police tracked down the kidnapping victim near the intersection of Janine Street and Cundles Road East in Barrie.

Investigators never found the guns used in the kidnapping.

The woman told the court she “can still hear the gunshot that was fired at the man who tried to help me. The sound is imprinted in my brain, in my ears at random moments. Even in silence, it plays on repeat in my mind, an endless reminder of that night. My ears still ring from the impact, a constant reminder that my body remembers even when I try to forget. I can still hear the ringing in my ears from when I was struck in the face with the bottom of the gun.”

A.T. said “the events she endured throughout these offences were traumatic, terrifying, physically painful, and emotionally draining,” according to the sentencing decision, dated Aug. 22.

The kidnapping victim told the court she doesn’t go outside alone now.

“The fear is too overwhelming,” she said. “I feel like I have a target on my back, like someone is always watching, waiting for the right moment. My heart races at the thought of being approached, followed, or taken.”

Every time she sees headlights in the dark, it feels as if she’s been taken back to that moment when she was grabbed.

“My body reacts before my mind can catch up. Panic sets in, my breath becomes shallow, and I feel like I am seconds away from being dragged away.”

She doesn’t even feel safe inside her own home. “My mind plays tricks on me. I see people trying to get in, trying to force open the door, trying to climb onto my balcony even though I know it’s impossible. The fear is so real that I find myself waiting for something to happen. Every sound feels like a threat.”

Before he was behind bars, Moore, a father of three, lived with his mother and teenage daughter in North York.

Moore “last worked in 2022 doing deliveries and occasional factory work,” Townsend said. “To his credit, and as outlined in (several) letters of support, Mr. Moore has a loving relationship with all of his children and when he is able, he provides financial support to them.”

Moore came to Canada from Grenada when he was 20.

“He obtained refugee status in 2008 or 2009 as he was attempting to escape gang violence in Grenada,” said the judge.

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