Child pornography investigations double on the West Shore

Child pornography investigations undertaken by West Shore RCMP doubled last year compared to 2021.

The police force said the possession, distribution and production of child pornography represent the majority of cases handled by its serious crime unit – a department that also investigates attempted murder, aggravated assault and firearm-related offences.

There were 39 child porn investigations by West Shore RCMP in 2022, up from 19 the year prior. Police in a Monday (March 20) news release highlighted how investigations have led to six convictions since last September. The RCMP said those investigations are complex and rely heavily on policing resources as they include obtaining production orders, search warrants, conducting surveillance and analyzing enormous amounts of data.

The investigations into those various cases ranged from eight months to two and a half years to complete and led to offenders getting between a seven-month conditional sentence to four years in jail. The six offenders – five of them being men – were all between the ages of 18 and 40.

“Though the number of these investigations appears to be increasing year over year, the unit takes some comfort in these recent convictions,” said Sgt. Thana Hodge.

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