Toronto police have arrested and charged former Degrassi High actor Jason “Byrd” Dickens and three women in connection with child sexual abuse images and videos that were made and then shared on the internet.
Police say their investigation began on Jan. 20 after they received a tip that a man was uploading child pornography online.
A search warrant was issued on April 25 in west-end Toronto where officers say they located evidence that a man and a woman were engaged in the sexual abuse of children and animals.
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Dickens, 45, of Toronto was arrested and charged with 19 child pornography offences and one count of bestiality.
Dylan Anne McEwen, 31, of Toronto was also arrested and charged with nine child porn offences and one count of bestiality.
Police say both the accused frequented fetish websites such as collarspace.com, fetlife.com, bondage.com, and slavefarm.com.
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The investigation also resulted in the rescue of a number of children. Police believe there may be more victims and are urging anyone with information to come forward.
Police say Dickens is also known to have used the screen names Retodeviant, Byrd_Dawg, Sir Dirk, as well as the email addresses of retrodeviant@gmail.com, retrodeviantdawg@gmail.com, retrodeviant2004@hotmail.com, angrybyrdrigs@gmail.com, and Byrd_D@hotmail.com.
McEwen also went by the screen names Doll, Dirty Doll and used the email addresses of pretty_bitter_pill@hotmail.com, and dirtyslavedoll@yahoo.com.
Police say Dickens faces further charges resulting from an investigation between January 2000 and 2006. In that case, a man met a woman online, engaged in the sexual abuse of a child and posted images and videos online.
Dickens was charged with six additional offences in relation to that case. A 57-year-old woman from London, Ont., was charged with 10 child porn offences.
A fourth woman, identified as 25-year-old Tina Ewen of Thunder Bay, was also arrested and charged in a separate incident.
WATCH: Police confirm former ‘Degrassi High’ actor arrested for child porn
According to website IMDb.com, Dickens portrayed Scott Smith, the abusive ex-boyfriend of character Kathleen Mead, in Seasons 1 to 3 of Degrassi Junior High and the first two seasons of Degrassi High.
The former actor had been recently employed as a light technician for a number of television series such as Beauty and the Beast, Minority Report and Heroes Reborn.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Mike Sabadin at 416-808-7707, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at http://www.222tips.com, or text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637).