A teen from Kitchener, Ont., was a victim in a sexual exploitation case in Minnesota, Waterloo Regional Police have confirmed.
According to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota, a 24-year-old man from Coon Rapids pleaded guilty to several charges connected to an online sexploitation scheme.
The release says that the man, who at one time worked in middle school special education, was using social media accounts to connect with minors.
He also ran an online gaming forum that required users to submit an application to join which included their ages.
Get daily National news
The D.A.’s office says that the man knew that many of those who used the site were minors and that he would use his position as administrator to coerce the teens into producing child pornography and engaging in sexual activity with him. He would offer in-game perks, privileges and other gifts as part of his strategy.
The release says that he was operating the site from 2016 to 2021 and in one case he “coerced a 13-year-old victim to engage in sexually explicit acts for the purpose of producing images and videos.”
He later threatened to release the images if the victim refused to follow his demands.
The release says that the investigation into the case involved the FBI, Waterloo Regional Police as well as a sheriff’s offices in Ohio and Minnesota.
Last June, Glen Robert Anderson plead guilty to a number of child exploitation charges in connection to the case and earlier this month he was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Comments