An Alberta man and an American prisoner are each facing child sexual exploitation charges as a result of a cross-border police investigation involving ALERT, U.S. Homeland Security and investigators in Tennessee.
A man from the Kikino Metis Settlement, located 200 kilometers northeast of Edmonton, was allegedly sharing child sexual exploitation material with an inmate serving time in Knoxville, Tenn.
Peter Ritchie, 44, was arrested by the ALERT Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit on Aug. 26 with help from Lac La Biche RCMP. Ritchie was charged with possession, distributing and making child pornography.
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ALERT said Ritchie is a member of the Kikino Metis Settlement Fire Department, but at this point in the investigation, ICE does not believe any contact offences took place.
The accused allegedly shared extremely graphic child pornography with Tennessee inmate Christopher Grippe, 28, who was already serving time for sexually exploiting a minor.
An electronic device was allegedly smuggled into the prison and the two men met via social media, authorities said. Knoxville Internet Crimes Against Children Unit intervened and arrested Grippe.
“To smuggle an electronic device into a prison reveals the risks that a child predator will take to victimize a child,” Knoxville Police Department Chief David Rausch said.
He added that when it comes to tracking down predators who chose to victimize children, investigators know no borders.
Grippe was in the midst of serving an eight-year sentence for sexual exploitation of a minor. He has been indicted for distribution and possession of child pornography and appeared before a Federal Grand Jury on Sept. 20, 2016.
Grippe’s arraignment is set for Oct. 3 with his charges carrying a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years and up to 40 years.
Ritchie is scheduled to appear in Lac La Biche court on Oct. 31.
ALERT (Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams) is an Alberta Government agency that investigates serious and organized crime. Members include Alberta Sheriffs, RCMP and police from Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge and Medicine Hat.
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