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IN DEPTH: LaFortune assault
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Dustin LaFortune plans to move to Victoria, B.C., to continue his recovery. (CBC)Dustin LaFortune, the man at the centre of a case of alleged torture, says he is relieved an arrest has been made.
LaFortune, 26, was interviewed by CBC News on Friday at the Wascana Rehabilitation Centre in Regina, where he is recovering from a number of injuries his family describe as resulting from torture.
He told CBC News reporter Dani Mario that the man accused of assaulting him, Dustin Paxton, was very manipulative.
"He was such a scary guy," he said. "And so manipulative."
Paxton, who was arrested Monday in Edmonton, is currently in custody in Calgary, where some of the abuse is alleged to have occurred. Paxton made his first appearance on several charges, including forcible confinement, Friday morning.
LaFortune said the two of them came to Regina earlier this year to take advantage of the city's booming economy. They both worked in the moving business.
He claims he was victimized for over a year, but was afraid to speak out.
"I was really scared of him," LaFortune said. "I think I thought it would just get worse, all of the time.
"He made sure to hit me every single day. I just hated when he used stuff like the whip or the cane or something like that."
LaFortune appeared in much better shape Friday than when he was dumped at Regina General Hospital in April, but he is continuing to recover from serious injuries.
"I just can't believe how screwed up I was," he said of his ordeal. "I looked like such an old man."
LaFortune said his memory, which was not good at the start of his hospital stay, is vastly improved.
"A bunch of memory came back. And then a whole bunch more," he said. "I just remember everything now."
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LaFortune is expected to move Monday to Victoria to continue his recovery at his mother's home.
"Excited," LaFortune said about the move to B.C. "I can't wait to see the Pacific Ocean and my mom and my little brother and my stepdad. I'm so excited."
He said reconstructive surgery is planned for his lips and ears.
LaFortune said he was in good spirits and expressed optimism about his recovery.
"The hardest thing is just understanding what the side-effects are of my brain damage," he said. "I'm a pretty fast healer. It seems all the goals I've set, I've met."
His case has received widespread attention, especially on social networking sites like Facebook.
"I totally want to say thank you for their support and everything like that," LaFortune said of the people following his progress. "I'm just so thankful that I have all these supporters. It's just so awesome, I can't even believe there's a city of people out there — a city's worth of people out there — that are just on my side about this. I can't even believe that."
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