A Vancouver man accused of pimping girls as young as 14-years-old may have tried to contact some of his alleged victims by posing as a woman on Facebook, according to search warrant documents obtained by CTV News.
Reza Moazami was arrested last October at a suspected bawdy house in South Vancouver, where he’s accused of luring 11 young women and underage girls into prostitution.
The 28-year-old was released two months later on $100,000 bail, which was secured by his mother, and ordered not to access the internet or contact any of his alleged victims.
But police believe Moazami breached those conditions, and newly-obtained search warrant documents shed light on the latest accusations.
The files indicate that in May and June, two of Moazami’s alleged victims called police to report that a suspicious person going by the name “Ann Kirk” had reached out to them on Facebook.
The individual allegedly told one of the girls that her pictures were “real nice” and asked for more, but a number of aspects of the account raised suspicions.
“Kirk was born in 1990 and her graduation year was 2005,” the police documents say, adding that “very few people graduate at 15 years of age.”
The sex listed on the account was also male, despite the name being used, and the profile picture was of a red sports car.
Police say they examined the account and found connections to at least two of Moazami’s other alleged victims, and possibly more.
According to the police documents, investigators traced an IP address involved in the Facebook communications to a watefront Yaletown condo owned by Moazami’s sister. The suite was eventually searched, and a number of electronic devices were seized inside.
Moazami was arrested on Aug. 9 and charged with breach of recognizance. None of the allegations have been proven in court.
Crown prosecutors have also approved a total of 36 counts against Moazami for charges that include living on the avails of a juvenile, sexual interference and sexual exploitation. He’s also the first person ever to be charged with trafficking minors in B.C., a charge that carries a minimum jail sentence of five years.
Advocates working to stop child exploitation say they’re watching the case carefully, and urge children to report any suspicious online activity.
“We have predators actually grooming people online, recruiting them, advertising them online once they have them in their control,” said Diane Sowden of the Children of the Street Society.
Online sexual exploitation of children can also be reported online at the CyberTip.ca website.
With a report from CTV British Columbia’s Mi-Jung Lee
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