BPS confirms Norwegian link to child pornography case

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/02/2025 (289 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Brandon man who faces child pornography charges was arrested after Norwegian authorities seized a device overseas and discovered evidence connected to Canada, police confirm.

In a statement to the Sun, Brandon Police Service deputy chief Greg Hebert confirmed that Norwegian authorities were investigating a Norwegian man when they found evidence leading to Manitoba. The foreign police tipped Canadian authorities, which led to a Brandon police investigation that began on Feb. 3. That seemingly led to a quick arrest as the 37-year-old suspect appeared in court the next day.

The Brandon man was arrested, but BPS wouldn’t say at the time if there were any additional suspects. The new link to Norway confirms one extra suspect, but in international cases like this it is common that many people are involved, an expert told the Sun.

Tamara De Luca, the operations manager for Cybertip, under the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, said child sexual abuse material offenders often act as part of communities. While she was not able to comment on the specific case in Brandon, she said it is typical that offenders are part of a network that supports each other, trading material, and so investigations into one person often lead to discovering many suspects.

“That is typically what we see,” said De Luca, who works at the centre, which has forwarded about 32,900 tips to police authorities or child welfare since it launched in 2002.

“Generally, they’re connected in some sense, there really is … I don’t want to use the word ‘advocacy,’ but a strong advocacy that they have for one another in these communities. Oftentimes to even be ‘initiated’ into these communities, you have to share a certain level of content to be able to receive anything back.”

De Luca said offenders typically connect on apps such as WhatsApp and Telegram. She said platforms are chosen for their encryption and because offenders know children use the apps.

CBC has reported that Norwegian police said this month that their suspect exchanged content with the Brandon man. The police service said the two were using apps like Telegram to send each other photos and videos. The Norwegian man was also found to be in contact with others, not only the man in Brandon.

“He had communication with several people,” said Norwegian police prosecutor Jeanette Svendsen. “Same kind of communication about abusive material, about abuse of children.”

The Norwegian man pleaded guilty to possessing abusive material and being complicit in the rape of a child younger than 14, CBC reported this week.

When asked how offenders connect, De Luca told the Sun people commonly meet on public social media pages.

She said there are many examples of forums, and offenders find others with similar interests based on demographics like age, gender and more that they are looking for.

The offenders are then able to communicate with each other and form groups where they can exchange material, De Luca said.

“In the comment section, you can go in and find somebody trying to sell (child sexual abuse material) and just go right from there,” she said. “Facebook pages that seem to be dedicated to almost sexualized child modelling images, or, you know, fan pages for child actors or famous gymnasts, things like that.”

The Brandon Sun has learned the identity of the suspect, but is not naming him because it could identify young victims.

When the Sun told De Luca that Brandon reporters have reviewed the Facebook account of the accused Brandon man and found he is following a 13-year old girl musician, as well as one page composed entirely of sexualized content, De Luca said that is consistent with this type of activity.

The Sun has not been able to connect with a news reporter in Norway who reached out to discuss the case. The reporter told the Sun last week that he was reporting on a case where child pornography material had been shared internationally out of Norway.

The Brandon man was charged this month with assault, sexual assault, touching a child under the age of 16 for a sexual purpose, and a list of child pornography charges that include making, distributing, accessing and possessing the material.

The Brandon man was found in early February with six children inside his home, where he lived with a common-law partner, police said. Brandon Police Service Chief Tyler Bates confirmed the man is suspected of creating child pornography material with kids under his care, through a daycare in the home and through foster parenting.

Hebert told the Sun on Wednesday that more charges are likely as police further review evidence and conduct interviews.

» cmcdowell@brandonsun.com