A high-risk child sex offender who vanished for multiple days after removing his electronic monitoring device will not have any changes made to his release plan.
Randall Hopley will be allowed to leave his halfway house and go on overnight leave in the community if his parole supervisor approves it. Currently, Hopley remains in custody.
In an email to Glacier Media Wednesday, the Parole Board of Canada said it “made the decision to take no action to change a condition imposed on a long-term supervision order.”
“There is no information that your most recent concerning breach related incidents were related to your authorization of overnight leave,” says the Feb. 2 decision by the board.
Hopley turned himself in at the Vancouver Police Department building on East Cordova Street in the Downtown Eastside shortly after 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 14. He had been on the run for 10 days and allegedly told police it was too cold to remain on the streets.
Hopley, 58, never returned to his Vancouver halfway house, the Salvation Army's Harbour Light facility, on Nov. 4. His electronic ankle monitoring bracelet was removed at Main Street and East 8th Avenue. A Canada-wide warrant was subsequently issued.
Police believe he was attempting to avoid a trial on Nov. 6 for allegedly breaching a long-term supervision order.
During a Nov. 14 press conference, Vancouver police said they would spend time working to learn what Hopley did during those 10 days.
According to the board, there is no information he committed further offences but there "was no ability to track" his activity as he removed his electronic monitoring device.
Hopley served six years for 2011 abduction of boy in southeastern B.C.
Back in 2011, he abducted a three-year-old boy from his home in Sparwood in southeastern B.C. and was released with conditions under a long-term supervision order. Hopley held the boy captive in a cabin for four days before returning him unharmed.
Hopley completed a six-year prison term for the incident.
He was arrested in January 2023 for allegedly breaching those conditions by visiting a library and getting too close to children and was released on bail.
In 2008, Hopley was convicted of breaking and entering into a home and removing a child from his foster family. He was also convicted of sexual assault of a five-year-old boy and assault of a woman in a parking lot.
‘Little to no gains’ with programs
Hopley declined mental health supports but has participated in a sex offender program with a one-on-one program facilitator.
In the parole board decision, it states Hopley’s final assessment showed he made "little to no gains."
The board describes him as a "repeat sex offender who has been identified to have pedophiliac tendencies and [has] been assessed as a generally high risk to reoffend sexually and a moderate risk for other types of offending."
Hopley was caught with a smartwatch that had internet capacity. The decision states Hopley said he found the watch and "did not know it had internet capacity."
“As the battery was dead, your explanation was accepted,” states the board’s decision.
According to the board, Hopley has demonstrated a lack of insight into some of the key risk factors and has continued to engage in some high-risk behaviours.
"While your cognitive challenges are noted, they do not explain your general resistant attitude and your unwillingness to seek out employment that could help you to spend your time in a more constructive manner,” states the decision.
In 2018 and 2019, the board noted that "various concerning items" were found in his possession, including adult underclothes, pornography, a SIM card, sex toys and child-related items.
They also discovered information that he accessed dating sites.
Hopley was suspended with a board recommendation for the laying of charges.
The decision explains how in November 2022, Hopley breached his condition not to be near children’s areas. He was located about three feet away from a group of children visiting the library.
Hopley has a history of having angry outbursts at various staff and at his parole supervisor, according to the decision.
As part of his long-term supervision order, he has many conditions, including not being near children's areas. He must avoid children and respect a curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., and restrictions on pornography and the internet.
Hopley’s next court appearance is scheduled for April 26. He faces four counts of breach of a long-term supervision order and failing to appear.
