SQLFusion - Police rescue two kids from sex abuse

Ont. police rescue two kids from sex abuse, but say thousands more out there

Yahoo Canada

05 February 2009

By Leanne Davis,

The Canadian Press

TORONTO - Two children who were rescued as part of a provincewide child pornography investigation that resulted in 31 arrests are just the tip of the iceberg, and there are likely thousands of other kids out there still being exploited, an Ontario Provincial Police officer said Thursday.

"Unfortunately I believe there's thousands of children we're not getting to, and that's particularly difficult," said Insp. Andrew Stewart, who manages the police force's child sexual exploitation section.

"When we do rescue children, of course it is tremendously satisfying, and that's what we're here for. We're here to protect children."

Police didn't say much about the rescued children - only that they are a 12-year-old girl and four-year-old boy who are now in care and receiving the appropriate treatment.

Their rescue was detailed Thursday during a news conference where police announced that the largest co-ordinated child pornography investigation of its kind in Ontario had led to a total of 93 charges laid against 31 people. Three of the accused are youths, while the oldest is a 60-year-old man.

Stewart had a message for other victims: "For those children waiting to be rescued, we're looking for you. Tell someone."

The arrests are a direct result of, among other things, improved tools to track down alleged child pornographers on the Internet, said provincial police Commissioner Julian Fantino.

"The Internet continues to pose a threat to children, parents, and certainly we feel challenged in our ability to keep up, to keep pace, with the pervasive use being made of it by those who seek to victimize children," Fantino said.

"The arrests ... are directly attributed to the acquisition of better equipment, consistent training, centralized co-ordination and a determined effort to do all we can to protect our children."

The charges include sexual assault, sexual interference, making child pornography, distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.

More charges are pending, police said. Fantino said the reality for police is that they are in "catch-up mode" when it comes to arresting perpetrators. Officials estimate there are at least 65,000 people in Canada who trade videos and pictures of children being abused. The RCMP calls that estimate "conservative."

Fantino said while he and his colleagues must follow the parameters of the law, those making and distributing child pornography are constantly trying to stay a step ahead of police.

He said one solution would be for the federal government to improve what he called the "woefully inadequate" national sex offender registry. Those improvements would include the automatic registration of sex offenders upon conviction, as well as ensuring that members of all police services across Canada have access to the registry.

"We need to know who's who from the point of view of those that present the greatest amount of danger to vulnerable people," Fantino said. "It isn't about privacy - it's about the greater good."

Fantino said the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police has been asking for improvements to the national registry for some time, but nothing meaningful has happened.

Following its national meeting in Montreal last summer, the association asked the federal government to adopt the more "comprehensive" features of Ontario's registry.

"We just keep on asking, and we hope that with examples such as this ... a true portrayal of our needs are then reflected," Fantino said.

Children rescued in 'largest' child porn bust

Toronto Star

05 Feb 2009 12:05 PM

Peter Edwards

Staff reporter

A four-year-old boy and 12-year-old girl were rescued from sexual abuse during what police said was the largest child pornography bust in Ontario history.

Police announced the arrests of 31 people, who face a total of 93 charges, at a press conference this morning.

Those charged include a 14-year-old, who can't be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, and a 60-year-old. The charges range from sexual assault to possession of child pornography.

More charges are pending, police said.

The suspects are all men, and many were relatives or neighbours of victims, police said.

"The most fundamental responsibility of our society is to protect our children," Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Julian Fantino said this morning.

"The Internet continues to pose a threat to children, parents and certainly we feel challenged in our ability to keep up, to keep pace, with the pervasive use being made of it by those who seek to victimize children," he said.

Police from 18 services from across the province were represented at the press conference. The arrests were a response to the creation of a provincial strategy to combat child pornography.

Many sexual offenders trade crime pornography images like sports fans might swap baseball cards, police said.Despite the high numbers, police said studies show they suspect that 19 of 20 cases of child sexual abuse in Canada go undetected.

Since the strategy was put into place by the provincial government in August 2006, there have been 4,782 investigations, leading to 1,983 charges against 634 people.

Fantino used the press conference to push for a cross-Canada sexual abuse registry to help people fight the victimization of children by child pornography on the Internet.

"The Internet knows no boundaries," Fantino said.

With files from The Canadian Press

People arrested in OPP child porn investigation

Toronto Star

05 Feb 2009 03:30 PM THE CANADIAN PRESS

Ontario Provincial Police have arrested 31 people in a provincewide child pornography investigation. A list of their names and the charges they face:

Matthew Bates, 23, of Guelph, Ont.; possession of child pornography, make available child pornography.

Terrence Blatchley, 44, of Niagara Falls, Ont.; possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography, make available child pornography.

John Burnes, 20, of Kingston, Ont.; possession of child pornography, make available child pornography.

Mark Caron, 38, of Wasaga Beach, Ont.; two counts of possession of child pornography, make available child pornography.

Christopher Clausen, 37, of London, Ont.; two counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of distribution of child pornography.

Michael DiMatteo, 18, of London, Ont.; three counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of distribution of child pornography, making child pornography.

Nathan Engler, 33, of Ottawa; possession of child pornography, distribute child pornography.

Scott Ersman, 18, of Welland, Ont.; possession of child pornography.

Alex Fiaoni, 33, of Woodbridge, Ont., possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography.

Paul Freestone, 43, of Palmerston, Ont.; possession of child pornography, make available child pornography, possession of narcotic for the purpose of trafficking (methamphetamine).

Chad Groves, 24, of Richmond Hill, Ont.; possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography.

Nicola Ierullo, 46, of London, Ont.; two counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of distribution of child pornography, possession of a controlled substance.

Karl James, 57, of Guelph, Ont.; possession of child pornography, make available for distribution, making child pornography.

Kevin Kuzmich, 34, of Thunder Bay, Ont.; possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography.

Perry Maeckler, 47, of Windsor, Ont.; possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography.
Colin Mitchell, 52, of Brantford, Ont.; possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography, breach of probation.

Kevin Nisbet, 42, of London, Ont.; four counts of possession of child pornography, three counts of distribution of child pornography.

Adam Rizewiski, 27, of Ottawa; possession of child pornography, make available child pornography, possession of contraband cigarettes (Tobacco Excise Act).

Martin Rowe, 42, of Matheson, Ont.; possession of a controlled substance, two counts possession of child pornography, make available child pornography.

John Norman Sled, 60, of Hamilton; possession of child pornography, make available child pornography.

Michael Sproule, 36, of Mississauga, Ont.; possession of child pornography, access child pornography, make available child pornography.

Vladimir Tchemissov, 52, of Toronto; possession of child pornography, make available child pornography.

Alessandro Vece, 40, of Toronto; two counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of making available child pornography.

Dane Raymond Wilson, 40, Elmira, Ont., possession of child pornography, making available child pornography, accessing child pornography.

A 53-year-old man from Burlington, Ont. (name withheld to protect identity of victim); sexual assault, sexual interference, possession of child pornography, making available child pornography.

A 53-year-old man from Ottawa (name withheld to protect indentity of victim); two counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of distributing child pornography, making child pornography.

A man from Sudbury, Ont.; two counts of possession of child pornography, making available child pornography.

A youth from Mississauga, Ont.; possession of child pornography, access child pornography, making available child pornography.

A youth from Oshawa, Ont.; possession of child pornography, make available child pornography.

A youth from Sudbury, Ont.; possession of a controlled substance.

A youth from Windsor, Ont.; possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography.

2 York Region men arrested in province wide child porn bust

Regional News

Yorkregion.com

05 February 2009 02:36 PM

Two York Region residents are among the 31 people swept up in the largest child pornography investigation in the province’s history, the OPP said.

Thirty three search warrants were executed, which resulted in 93 charges against 31 people.

Charges include, sexual assault, sexual interference, making child pornography, make available child pornography, distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography.

Two child victims have been identified through this investigation so far, police said.

The accused were charged following provincewide raids Wednesday.

Additional arrests are pending, police said.

Among the charged are Chad Groves, 24, of Richmond Hill.

Mr. Groves faces one count of possession of child pornography and distribution of child pornography.

He was scheduled to appear in Newmarket court today.

Alex Fiaoni, 33, of Woodbridge is charged with possession of child pornography and distribution of child pornography.

He also appeared in Newmarket court today.

Police from 18 services from across the province were represented at a Toronto press conference. The arrests were a response to the creation of a provincial strategy to combat child pornography.

Many sexual offenders trade crime pornography images similar to sports fans might swap baseball cards, police said.

Despite the high numbers, studies show police suspect 19 of 20 cases of child sexual abuse in Canada go undetected.

OPP Commissioner Jullian Fantino used the press conference to push for a cross-Canada sexual abuse registry to help people fight the victimization of children by child pornography on the Internet.

“The Internet knows no boundaries,” Mr. Fantino said.

— with files from thestar.ca