The RCMP-RNC Integrated Internet Child Exploitation (IICE) team has arrested and charged 41-year-old Matthew Kerr of St. John's in relation to online child exploitation offences.
The investigation, which began in 2021, led to the execution of a search warrant at Kerr's St. John's home last October where a number of electronics were seized and sent for analysis. The analysis revealed evidence of online child exploitation offences.
As a result, Matthew Kerr was arrested on September 28, 2022, and is charged with the following offences:
- Accessing child pornography
- Transmission of child pornography – two counts
- Breach of probation – two counts
In accordance with arrest and release procedures, Kerr was released from custody with conditions designed to protect the general public. He is set to attend court at a later date.
The RCMP-RNC IICE team encourages caregivers and youth to learn about current online threats and safety practices at cybertips.ca, protectchildren.ca, kidsintheknow.ca, dontgetsextorted.ca, commit2kids.ca and needhelpnow.ca.
Child pornography cases require complex forensic examination of seized electronics, followed by additional investigation actions. Consequently, criminal charges in these cases are often laid 9-12 months after the execution of a search warrant.