A man who sexually assaulted a girl in the back of a bus at a March Break camp was sentenced to five years in prison on Tuesday.

Anthony Leo Gough, 49, served as the executive director of the Social Opportunities and Rec Society of Nova Scotia (SOARS).

In March, the Middle Sackville, N.S., man raped a 17-year-old girl who has an intellectual disability. The camp caters to young people with intellectual and physical disabilities.

Gough pleaded guilty to the charge. On Tuesday, a Dartmouth provincial court judge ordered Gough to have no contact with his victim, in addition to sentencing him to federal prison time. He must submit a DNA sample and will be on the national sex offenders registry for 20 years.

Judge Timothy Gabriel described the attack as "opportunistic and predatory behaviour."

"You stole a portion of her life that she will never get back," Gabriel said.

Gough did not speak. His lawyer, Thomas Singleton, said Gough has two daughters of his own and said "it boggles the mind" that he would assault a girl in his care.

"There are no nice things I can say as a lawyer and a human being about Mr. Gough's actions in this case," Singleton said.

The victim's mother told the court the sentence "will never replace that which was stolen." Her daughter was badly hurt by the attack, she said. She lives with terror, insists the house be locked tight each night and even then struggles to sleep.

Gough had no criminal record, which meant he could have access to his victim. The Nova Scotia day camp was held in a church basement. Gough drove the bus that took the campers home.