Camrose man charged with child porn offences

Alberta police have laid child porn charges against a Camrose man after he was arrested in his home last week.

Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team's (ALERT) Internet and Child Exploitation (ICE) team partnered with Camrose police on an investigation into an online chat where a man allegedly distributed child sexual abuse material through the forum last year, said an ALERT news release Friday. The RCMP'S National Child Exploitation Crime Centre became aware of the offence and referred it to ALERT.

“ICE'S investigation identified a Camrose suspect and at that point, Camrose police became involved. Our agencies were then able to work together to make a timely arrest,” said Sgt. Scott Sveinbjornson with the Camrose Police Service in the release.

Junvier Fajarito, 20, was arrested in his Camrose home on Jan. 6.

He has been charged with possession and distribution of child pornography.

ALERT'S ICE team saw a spike in child exploitation cases in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. A large portion of the cases are brought to ALERT via the National Child Exploitation Coordination Centre in Ottawa. The centre works with agencies around the world to track child pornography.

In October, Sgt. Kerry Shima said the unit had seen 829 case intakes, up from the 747 total intakes the year before.

Anyone with information regarding the Camrose case, or any child exploitation case, is asked to contact local police.

Have you noticed a police presence, crime scene or other development unfolding in the city that we should know about? Email edmcrimetips@postmedia.com