Two Guelph arrests during provincial child exploitation project
Two Guelph men were among the 64 people arrested during the province-wide Project Aquatic, targeting those involved in online child exploitation.
The Guelph Police Service was one of 27 municipal police services which participated in the OPP-led Provincial Strategy to Protect Children from Sexual Abuse and Exploitation on the Internet, the results of which were announced Wednesday morning.
The project ran over a 10-day period in February to identify and arrest those involved in making, possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material.
As a result of Project Aquatic:
- 34 victims were identified
- 30 children were safeguarded
- 64 people were charged
- 348 charges were laid
- 607 electronic devices were seized
Locally, a 19-year-old man and 55-year-old man were arrested in separate investigations and each face charges of possessing, accessing and distributing child pornography. Both have been released with upcoming court dates.
Members of the public are invited to learn more about keeping children safe by visiting the Canadian Centre for Child Protection or cybertip.ca.
Anyone with information regarding instances of child exploitation is asked to contact their local police, or 911 if a child is in imminent danger.