Sex offender arrested returning to Vancouver

German police unscrambled photos of Neil to identify him on Sept. 29, 2012. (CTV)

A 37-year-old Canadian man who served more than three years in a prison in Thailand for sex crimes was arrested upon his return to Canada at Vancouver International Airport on Friday night.

Christopher Neil became the target of an international manhunt after German police descrambled photos of him involved in sex acts with children in 2007.

Neil was arrested in Nakhon Ratchasima, about 250 kilometres from Bangkok.

German police had found about 200 pictures of a man sexually abusing children, but his face was blurred out.

The big break came when they were able to descramble the face and identify Neil.

After his arrest, Thai police made a point of publicizing the case.

The Maple Ridge native was returning to Canada after his release when police arrested him at the airport.

RCMP had obtained a warrant for his arrest prior to his return to Canada on the grounds “his actions cause fear of sexual offences to persons under the age of 16.”

Neil has been remanded in custody and will appear in court Monday to address any public safety concerns.

With files from the Associated Press