Ontario Provincial Police say 17 people have been arrested and 55 charges laid after a joint effort called ‘Project Brace’ involving 15 police forces across the province. They included Greater Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins, North Bay and Thunder Bay. “Investigators targeted individuals making, possessing and distributing child sexual abuse material,” police said in a news release Monday. Of the 17 people arrested, none were from the north. “Online offenders are increasingly leveraging digital technologies to access and exploit children and youth,” said OPP provincial strategy coordinator, Tara Clark. “Through social media, gaming platforms, messaging applications, and peer-to-peer networks, they use deceptive tactics to groom victims, distribute child sexual abuse material and evade detection.” A total of 424 electronic devices were seized and investigators initiated 23 cases that remain active, police said. Police ask anyone with any information related to child sexual exploitation to contact police or report it to cybertip.ca.
