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November 09, 2016 - 11:36 AM
BARRIERE - The former volunteer fire chief at the Barriere Fire Department has been released from custody after being charged with offences relating to child pornography.
The B.C. Integrated Child Exploitation Unit launched an investigation in August, after receiving "several concering reports" from the United States National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, as well as the Canadian National Child Exploitation Coordination Centre, according to a RCMP media release.
Allan Kirkwood, 62, was arrested on Oct. 8 in Barriere and was formally charged with possessing and making available child pornography on Nov. 4.
RCMP say on Oct. 4 search warrants were executed at four Barriere and Clearwater areas. Kirkwood was arrested and released on a promise to appear in court. He's under conditions which limit his access to children and the internet.
Kirkwood's next court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 8 in Kamloops Provincial Court.
There is no evidence to suggest any local children were directly victimized by the accused, police say.
The investigation involved multiple RCMP units and jurisdictions including Barriere RCMP, Clearwater RCMP, Kamloops RCMP, North Okanagan RCMP General Investigations Section, Southeast District RCMP General Investigations Section and the Integrated Sexual Predator Observation Team.
“This investigation illustrates how effectively different units and jurisdictions within the RCMP work together and with other national and international partners to combat the ever growing issue of online child exploitation,” Insp. Tyler Svendson says in the release. “Keeping children safe is the primary goal of the B.C. Integrated Child Exploitation Unit."
Svendson, who is in charge of the RCMP Behavioural Sciences Group, says "investigators routinely travel throughout the province to ensure suspected offenders are identified and brought to justice.”
If you are aware of any incidents of online child exploitation, you can report them to your local police or online at Cybertip.ca.
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