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June 12, 2018 - 6:30 PM
VERNON - A Vernon man has been found guilty of committing cyber crimes against children in the Philippines.
Wayne Douglas Brown paid a woman in the Philippines to commit an offence against her daughter while he watched via a webcam, Crown counsel Frank Caputo said during a hearing Monday, June 11 in Vernon Provincial Court. Lengthy chat logs show how Brown arranged the offence between March 3, 2015 and June 2, 2016.
Brown also chatted with a victim who was, or who he believed to be, under 18 years old between the dates of Sept. 20 to Sept. 26, 2016. He asked her take suggestive pictures of herself in her undergarments. On another occasion, dated July 1, 2012 to May 21, 2015, Brown counselled a sexual offence between a girl and her mother.
Records show Brown sent money to the Philippines on a number of occasions, Caputo said.
Brown was initially charged on Sept. 29, 2016 with three counts: telecommunicating with a person under 18 for the purpose of facilitating an offence, telecommunicating with a person under 16 for the purpose of facilitating an offence and possession of child pornography. Eight more charges were eventually laid on Aug. 16, 2017, as part of an extensive investigation that involved police meeting with a witness in the Philippines.
Judge Monica McParland found Brown guilty of six charges, including telecommunicating with children under 16 and 18 to facilitate an offence, possession of child pornography, arranging an offence with another person against children under 16 and 18, and unlawfully counselling the offence of sexual interference and invitation to sexual touching.
Brown returns to court June 13 to fix a date for sentencing.
The United Nations says tens of thousands of children in the Philippines are sexually exploited, often involving live-streaming operations run by the children’s own parents, according to several news sources including The Guardian.
To report online child sexual exploitation, contact your local RCMP detachment or leave a tip at cybertip.ca.
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