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July 09, 2013 - 5:20 PM
KELOWNA - Three men were targeted for offences ranging from manufacturing child pornography to the luring of a child leading to separate search warrants, executed during the week of June 24-28.
The B.C. Integrated Child Exploitation unit, specializing in investigating internet facilitated offences against children travelled from Surrey to search the Kelowna residences as part of an investigation that included undercover operations.
One of the men was living with children at the time the offences occurred, prompting an emergency response by the RCMP unit, along with the Ministry of Children and Family. He is currently under investigation.
"Any time the safety of children is threatened we have to act immediately," Sgt. Mat Van Laer of the child exploitation unit stated in a press release.
While children had been identified at risk in some of these Kelowna investigations, the unit reports there is no evidence at this time to suggest any local children were directly victimized.
The other two men were arrested and released with strict conditions restricting their future contact with children and access to the internet. A number of electronic devices were seized from the homes of all three men and are currently being analyzed. Additional charges may be laid depending on what investigators find.
The child exploitation unit states they use undercover officers to identify and apprehend those who target children on the internet for a sexual purpose.
"We continue to use various tools in our disposal to track down these online predators," Sgt. Van Laer says. "We aim to hunt those who would prey on children by using every police technique available."
The unit also relies on tips from the public and encourages anyone with information about the online exploitation of children to contact either their local police or report online.
News from © iNFOnews, 2013