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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - A 31-year-old Yellowknife man has pleaded guilty to sexual assault charges stemming from his youth.

The man's cousin accused him of attempting anal sex on him at their grandparents' house. The complainant was between the ages of seven and nine at the time while the guilty party was 13 to 15 years-old.

Even though he is an adult now, the man will be sentenced as a youth.

The incident came to light when the victim revealed details during counselling in 2007, Crown attorney Shannon Smallwood said in court Tuesday.

The victim "was angry and he was tired of being angry," said Smallwood of why the victim chose to report the incident 15 years later.

Smallwood asked that the guilty man be given 12 months in jail, saying he does not show a marked remorse, though he does not want his wife, or mother, to be "bothered" by hearing the incident, she said.

"The accused was a teenager, the victim was a child. He had to know this was wrong," added Smallwood.

Defence lawyer Kelly Payne asked for the matter to be dealt with without sending the man to jail.

"Quite apart from denying the seriousness of the offence, he has (taken) steps to ensure the victim did not relive (the incident)," said Payne. "He is a remorseful 31-year-old."

Payne said the accused lived in Paulatuk and Inuvik as a child and had attended residential schools.

She added the actions upon his cousin "mirrored" what happened to him as a young child and, at the time of the incident, he did not understand the difference between right and wrong.

"This disturbing behaviour, you can take as having ended in 1992," said Payne, referring to the approximate time of the incident.

"I'm not very much for speaking," said the accused when asked if he had anything to say. "If I could turn back time (I would)," he added, saying now he can see the difference between right and wrong.

Judge Brian Bruser delayed sentencing the man, who has two young children, until early February.