Date: Thursday, February 3, 2022
File: 22-3698
Victoria, BC – Patrol officers arrested a 35-year-old man on Tuesday night after an investigation into child luring in Victoria.
On Saturday, January 29th, VicPD officers were contacted by a concerned father who learned that a 35-year-old man had supplied free alcohol to his teenage daughter and her friend. The man was not known to the family and did not have any other relationship with the youth.
Officers investigated the incident and learned that the suspect had also sent lewd and inappropriate text messages to the youth and had provided the youth with free items. Officers believed the items were provided as part of grooming the youth for a sexual purpose.
After identifying and locating the suspect, officers arrested the man in Victoria on the evening of Tuesday, February 1st.
The suspect was transported to VicPD cells where he was later released with a court date and conditions. He faces recommended charges including luring a child, making sexually explicit material available to a child, and sexual interference.
Bill C-75, which came into effect nationally in 2019, legislated a “principle of restraint” that requires police to release an accused person at the earliest possible opportunity after considering certain factors which include the likelihood the accused will attend court, the imminence of the risk posed to public safety, and the impact on confidence in the criminal justice system. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms provides that every person has the right to liberty and the presumption of innocence pre-trial. Police are also asked to consider the circumstances of Indigenous or vulnerable persons in the process, in order to address the disproportionate impacts that the criminal justice system has on these populations.
Officers are asking parents to talk with their teenage children about staying safe, particularly in relation to potential grooming behavior by adults. For more information to support these conversations please visit the Canadian Centre for Child Protection.
This file remains under investigation.
If you have information about this incident, please call the VicPD Report Desk at (250) 995-7654 extension 1. To report what you know anonymously, please call Greater Victoria Crime Stoppers 1-800-222-8477.
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