A Pelly Crossing man who's been described as an "unrepentant, essentially untreated sexual offender” has been sentenced to 8 1/2 years in prison.

Joseph Townsend, also known as Joseph Desjarlais, was sentenced Friday afternoon in Yukon Supreme Court and classified as a dangerous offender. This means he will be under long-term supervision for 10 years after he is released.

The 58-year-old was convicted of his most recent sexual assault after a trial in November 2011.

This was his fourth conviction for sexual assault and the second time he has been convicted of sexually assaulting the same person.

Most recently, Townsend was found guilty of sexually assaulting the woman during the summer of 2010.

The pair had been drinking when the woman went to sleep in a tent clothed.

She woke up and found herself with her pants and underwear down and Towsend in the tent.

About seven years earlier, in 2003, he had pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting the same woman, this time while chocking her.

He was sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison.

Townsend's lengthy criminal record dates back to 1971. He has at least 75 convictions.

His first sexual assault conviction came in 1984, when he was sentenced to seven years in a federal prison for a violent attack on a 10-year-old girl involving a knife.

In 1992, he pleaded guilty to a second sexual assault and was sentenced to two months in jail.

Between 1993 and 2004, he was convicted of various crimes, including thefts, assaults and assaults causing bodily harm.

Despite his four convictions for sex crimes, including guilty pleas, Townsend now tells a different story.

He insists  all of the assaults on women were consensual sex and that the young girl misidentified him as her attacker.

He claims he was pressured into entering the guilty pleas.

While delivering his sentence Friday, Yukon Supreme Court Justice Ron Veale frequently referred to assessments done on Townsend prior to being sentenced.

One report "summarizes Mr. Townsend's current position on his past sexual violence as a denial that he committed any sexual violence ever against any adult or child. He does not see himself as a sexual offender or a violent man,” Veale said.

Townsend lacks empathy for his victims and has a high opinion of himself, the judge said.

"Despite his lengthy criminal record, he sees himself as generally decent, kind, and non-violent person. He considers himself to be very attractive to females,” Veale said, quoting the report.

That same report concluded "that ‘Mr. Townsend is an unrepentant, essentially untreated sexual offender.”

"Also, because there has been repetitive behaviour over extended periods of time, there is a high risk for further violence,” the judge said.

In delivering his sentence, Veale gave little consideration to possible rehabilitation.

"I conclude that, in the context of this sexual assault and its repercussions for the victim, and given Mr. Townsend's lack of insight or remorse, or even acceptance of responsibility, I cannot give great weight to restorative justice or rehabilitation objective which could lead to a lower-term of imprisonment.”

With credit for the time he has already spent behind bars, Townsend has slightly more than five years left in his sentence.