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Child porn investigations stress Lower Mainland RCMP detachment

A steady stream of investigations is keeping police busy
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Langley RCMP say they’ve had a significant number of local child pornography investigations recently.

The Langley RCMP has been undertaking so many child pornography investigations that it’s been tough on some of the officers, the head of the detachment said this week.

Since January this year, the RCMP has opened 17 investigations into distribution of child pornography, and 19 into accessing or possession of child porn.

“It’s taking its toll on our members in a number of ways,” said Supt. Murray Power, officer in charge of the Langley RCMP.

The volume of investigations underway would shock the community, Power said.

There are currently so many child porn investigations that they have been spread out among multiple units within the detachment.

The RCMP is looking after the mental health of officers who have to review child porn material for investigations, Power said. Each investigation can also be quite time consuming, he noted.

At present, the investigations are about people uploading and downloading child porn, rather than abusing children to create it, Power said.

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The files are essentially computer crime investigations.

“People think they’re invisible on the web,” Power commented, but he noted that is not true.

There has been a steady supply of charges against offenders, he said. For some of the investigations, particularly the more complicated ones, the local detachment works with the Integrated Child Exploitation (ICE) unit, which operates out of the Surrey Green Timbers RCMP facility. But the majority of the investigations are dealt with entirely by local officers.

The key factor is that child porn victimizes children, Power said.

“All those kids in those photos are victims,” he said.

He urged anyone who has wanted to or has downloaded child porn to seek therapy.

“I can’t stress this enough, get help,” said Power.

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Matthew Claxton

About the Author: Matthew Claxton

Raised in Langley, as a journalist today I focus on local politics, crime and homelessness.
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