A Winnipeg man has been sentenced to 18-months in jail for sexually exploiting a pair of vulnerable teenage girls he befriended.

Gordon McGinty, 32, pleaded guilty to having consensual sex with a 15-year-old girl he met at an inner-city house party in 2010. However, the Crown said the teen only has the mental intellect of an eight-year-old and was unable to give legal consent by law. She was also impaired by drugs and alcohol provided by McGinty, court was told.

McGinty also admits trying to procure oral sex from a 14-year-old girl he met at another party. The teen rejected his advances and reported the incident to police.

"I have a lot of shame," McGinty told court today.

Provincial court Judge Ray Wyant said he was "begrudgingly" going along with a joint-recommendation from Crown and defence lawyers to impose another four months of custody in addition to 14 months of time already served.

The Crown said there were major problems with bringing the case to trial – the 14-year-old victim refused to come to court and testify, while the 15-year-old girl doesn’t believe McGinty did anything wrong and wants to have a long-term relationship with him.

As a result, the Crown agreed to suggest a much more lenient penalty in exchange for the guilty plea.

"These are kids. Drinking, smoking drugs, having sex with kids from group homes? That is sick," Wyant said in handing down the sentence.

McGinty has a lengthy prior criminal record including nearly 30 previous breaches of court orders.