An Edmonton man is facing child exploitation charges for allegedly abusing four of his young relatives, following a national investigation which identified victims in Alberta, Manitoba and Nova Scotia.
The accused, 50, was arrested by members of the Internet Child Exploitation Unit on Aug. 31, the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams said in a news release Friday.
The man is facing more than a dozen charges, including sexual interference, touching for a sexual purpose, bestiality, and child pornography offences.
Four victims have been identified in the case, ALERT said.
Alleged abuse went on for years
The suspect first came to the attention of police in March, when he allegedly uploaded child pornography online.
The RCMP’s National Child Exploitation Coordination Centre referred the case to ICE investigators, who made the investigation a priority after it appeared the images being shared were homemade, ALERT said.
The suspect was first arrested on March 21, and was charged with one count of possession of child pornography and two counts of distribution of child pornography.
ICE officers continued to investigate the man, and uncovered the sexual abuse committed against his family members, ALERT said.
The offences took place in Edmonton, Manitoba and Nova Scotia over a period of several years while the victims were young children.
ICE is working with the Zebra Centre for Child Protection to support to the victims.
The accused’s name is not being released in order to protect the identities of the victims, ALERT said.
He is being transported under police supervision to Manitoba for court proceedings and is scheduled to appear in court in Thompson, Man., on Monday.
Investigators are expected to release more details on the case during a news conference on Friday. Det. Ian McFatridge of the ICE Unit will speak to media 11 a.m. at the ALERT’s Edmonton headquarters.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to contact their local police department.