Child luring charges laid against N.S. man who posed as 15-year-old boy

A complaint from two young girls has lead police to charge a 44-year-old man from Nine Mile River with child luring.

In April, the girls, aged 11 and 12, complained to Lower Sackville RCMP that they were receiving inappropriate messages online.

RCMP then passed the case onto the RCMP Internet Child Exploitation Unit (ICE). Through the course of a 10-month investigation, they found that a Nova Scotia man had been sending inappropriate messages to female teens while posing as a 15-year-old boy.

Todd Allen Sawler was arrested on Tuesday at a traffic stop, and police later seized several electronic devices from a home in Nine Mile River.

Sawler faces two charges of child luring and one of making sexually explicit material available to a child.

“Unfortunately we see this type of activity all too often and we want to remind citizens about the importance of being cautious while online,” said Const. Vicki Colford with the RCMP ICE Unit.

“We also urge parents to take a close look at their children’s social media accounts and ask questions. You know who your child’s school friends are, but it’s just as important to know who their online friends are.”

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Police say the investigation is ongoing. Sawler was scheduled to appear in Halifax Provincial Court Wednesday.