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Local man caught up in massive province-wide child porn bust

TORONTO, Ont. -- At least one Thunder Bay man has been caught up in a massive provincial investigation targeting online child exploitation. Police say 38-year-old Dawson Street resident Kyle Craigs of Thunder Bay, is among those 80 people.
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TORONTO, Ont. -- At least one Thunder Bay man has been caught up in a massive provincial investigation targeting online child exploitation.

Police say 38-year-old Dawson Street resident Kyle Craigs of Thunder Bay, is among those 80 people. He now faces a single count of possession of child pornography. Thunder Bay Police say two other residences were searched locally, with more investigation required before a decision can be made on whether or not charges will be laid. 

Thunder Bay Police said a cell phone, laptop, iPad and two other computers were seized from Craigs' residence. 

At a news conference in Toronto, the OPP’s Chief Superintendent Don Bell, accompanied by several representatives from a special provincial task force that included a variety of police forces, announced details of the investigation.

Alongside the press conference, police revealed the names of the 80 charged.

“The most fundamental responsibility of any society is to protect its children,” Bell said during the news conference in Toronto. 

“Every child has the right to be nurtured and the right to be safe. The Provincial Strategy demonstrates the success that police services worldwide can achieve when working together and sharing our best practices and information.”

Police say a total of 174 search warrants were executed during the investigation and 274 charges were eventually levied against the 80 accused.

Two youths were also caught up in the police sting. Their names will not be revealed in accordance with the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Police also identified 20 victims during their investigation. Those victims have been refered to the “appropriate community-based resources for assistance.”

The arrests made as a result of this investigation may only be scratching at the surface of the problem. Police displayed a video at the news conference showing 2,038 unique IP addresses that were broadcasting as either “download candidate” for suspected child pornography or where the user was present on a known child exploitation website.

These IP addresses were observed over the last 90 days in Ontario. 

“The work being done on these investigations by skilled investigators, technical support staff and front-line officers is one of the most difficult jobs in police work,” said Insp. Lisa Taylor, Manager of the OPP’s Electronic Crime Section.

“Children, teens and parents have a responsibility to educate themselves to ensure their online experiences are as rewarding as they want it to be and as safe as it needs to be.”

Craigs appeared in court on Wednesday. 

None of the charges have been proven in a court of law. 




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