Mountie's son says his scars 'still burn' from being shackled in family's basement

A boy who was severely abused at the hands of his father, a now-suspended RCMP counterterrorism officer, has told a court he still needs help getting over the torture he endured and expects to live with the physical and emotional scars for the rest of his life. The teen, who cannot be identified under a publication ban, spoke Tuesday in a recorded statement played as his stepmother faced a sentencing hearing for her role in his abuse. Now 14 years old, the boy said the marks on his body are a constant reminder of what happened. "I wish they weren't there," the boy said of the scars around his ankles that still burn whenever he takes a shower. In a victim impact statement recorded Dec. 16, the boy described how he struggles with anger issues and feels withdrawn when people ask him about his scars. "Sometimes I just cry randomly," he said, particularly when he is in school. It bothers him that he can't see his siblings, the boy said, adding that he has learned that he would never treat his own kids the way he was treated. And while he is receiving counselling for anger management and other issues resulting from his ordeal, he knows he will need help for some time, said the boy. "I need to put aside what happened to me, but I can't do it by myself." A judge last month found the father guilty of torturing and starving the boy by chaining him in the basement of the family home. He faces a sentencing hearing in March. The boy's stepmother was found guilty of assault with a weapon and failing to provide the necessaries of life and Justice Robert Maranger is to hand down her sentence on Jan. 20.