A St. John’s musician and former bar owner has been convicted of repeatedly sexually assaulting two teenage girls over a three-year span.

The verdict was handed down at Supreme Court in St. John’s this morning by Justice Vikas Khaladkar.

Thirty-seven-year-old Chris Carter was supposed to be looking after the girls while their mom worked.

But in reality, he was abusing them every chance he got. And if they didn’t comply, he punished them — taking away their phones, cutting off Wi-fi access, and even denying them meals until they gave him what he wanted.

And that included everything from sexual touching to forced oral sex and intercourse, with both girls estimating it happened to them separately dozens of times between 2018 and 2021, when they were between 12 and 15 years old.

When the risk of charges arose, Carter threatened and demanded they deny everything, and that they recant their statements to police.

Carter, meanwhile, denied it all, suggesting there was collusion between the girls and their mother.

But the judge didn’t buy any of it, calling Carter a “conniving, self-serving person who can’t be trusted.”

The victims, who can’t be identified, were in court this morning, surrounded and supported by family, as well as Victim Services, to hear the judge say he believed them and not Carter. Initial fears and uncertainty turned to tears of relief as the verdict was read aloud.

A Facebook group was also set up to follow the case and support the victims, with protests outside the courthouse whenever the case was called.

Carter was charged in June 2021 with eight counts, including sexual assault, interference and exploitation, as well as invitation to sexual touching.

He had entered the court today free on conditions, but was taken into custody following the verdict.

The sentencing phase is set for Nov. 8.

That will include submissions from Crown attorney Ashley Targett and defence lawyer Iain Hollett on sentence, as well as the filing of victim impact statements.