Alberta
Arrest made and child rescued in cross-border investigation

February 19, 2021
Child rescued in cross-border investigation
Calgary… A 37-year-old Fort St. John man has been arrested by ALERT’s Internet Child Exploitation unit for allegedly offending upon his daughter.
Following up on a tip, that was initially submitted to the Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) team based in Calgary, investigators were able to identify a B.C. suspect allegedly uploading child sexual abuse materials online. Further investigation revealed the photos were of the suspect’s young daughter.
ICE alleges that the suspect had been distributing the photos to another user online. The suspect was arrested on February 8, 2021.
“Our primary concern was the health and well-being of that child. Once we received that tip, our investigators sprang into action and made an arrest as quickly as possible,” said Sgt. Randy Poon, ALERT ICE.
“These types of crimes don’t respect borders or boundaries. The cooperation and enforcement between partners needs to be seamless and this file is an example of the efforts underway to detect, deter and investigate child exploitation files,” said Cpl. Madonna Saunderson, RCMP B.C. North District.
Law enforcement from across Canada, including ICE, the Calgary Police Service, Fort St. John RCMP, RCMP’s National Child Exploitation Coordination Centre, and United States’ National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, collaborated on the investigation.
The suspect’s name is not being released in order to protect the identity of the victim. The victim and family members are receiving help from a variety of specialized support services, and children’s services is involved.
A number of computer and electronic devices were seized for forensic analysis. ICE’s investigation is ongoing.
The 37-year-old man has been charged with:
- Making child pornography;
- Distributing child pornography;
- Possessing child pornography;
- Accessing child pornography; and
- Several firearms offences.
Anyone with information about this case or any child exploitation situation is asked to contact their local police or to report their concern anonymously at www.cybertip.ca.
ALERT was established and is funded by the Alberta Government and is a compilation of the province’s most sophisticated law enforcement resources committed to tackling serious and organized crime.
Alberta
Gustavsson leads AHL Senators in 4-2 win over Heat
CALGARY — Filip Gustavsson stopped 30 shots as the Belleville Senators doubled up the Stockton Heat 4-2 on Wednesday in American Hockey League play.
Lassi Thomson, Egor Sokolov, Mark Kastelic and Parker Kelly scored to help the Senators (8-12-1) halt a three-game slide.
Matthew Phillips and Zac Leslie replied for the Heat (10-12-1).
Garret Sparks stopped 28-of-31 shots for Stockton.
—
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 14, 2021.
The Canadian Press
Alberta
Calgary schools to shift to at-home learning for grades 7 to 12 due to COVID-19

CALGARY — The Alberta government says schools in Calgary will move to at-home learning starting Monday for students in grades 7 to 12.
The change, due to COVID-19, is to last for two weeks.
Alberta Education said Wednesday that it approved requests from public and Catholic schools in the city to make the move to online learning.
Education Minister Adriana LaGrange said in a release that some school boards are dealing with operational pressures due to rising COVID-19 cases.
“The safety of students and staff is my top priority, which is why I am responding to the boards’ requests and respecting their autonomy,” she said.
“By having a clear process in place, we are giving them flexibility to move to at-home learning when necessary.”
The province said it has not closed any schools for health reasons, and any decision to move a portion of a school to at-home learning is at the discretion of each school board.
About 19 per cent of schools have COVID-19 alerts or outbreaks. Nine schools are currently doing online learning.
Marilyn Dennis, board chair with the Calgary Board of Education, said in the release that the greatest impacts of COVID-19 have been in schools with higher grades.
Alberta’s chief medical health officer, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, also said there has been a sharp rise in cases among school-aged Albertans.
The province, with 15,569 active infections, currently has the highest rate of active cases in Canada.
On Wednesday, the province reported 1,412 new cases of COVID-19 and eight additional deaths due to the virus. There were 420 people in hospital due to COVID-19, with 92 in intensive care.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 14, 2021.
The Canadian Press
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