B.C. man linked to global child pornography operation receives conviction

A stock image shows a hand typing on a computer keyboard. (Soumil Kumar/Pexels)

A 34-year-old man from Surrey, B.C. has been convicted of child sexual exploitation following a years-long investigation into a global criminal operation.

Joey Andy Daigle is among 23 people who were arrested in connection to a joint, multi-jurisdictional investigation that was first launched by police in North Carolina, according to a statement issued Wednesday by the B.C. Integrated Child Exploitation Unit.

The unit says it received a tip from the RCMP's National Child Exploitation Crime Centre in November 2018 that the Boone Police Department and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations were working to identify members of a private group on a “mobile messenger application” dedicated to sexually exploiting children and trafficking child pornography.

A total of 38 jurisdictions received tips about local suspects, according to the statement.

BC ICE then launched its own investigation, which led them to identify Daigle as a suspect and execute a search warrant at his residence in April 2019. He was charged with child exploitation offences one year later.

Last month, Daigle was convicted and handed an 18-month conditional sentence, which BC ICE says will be served in the community, over offences related to making and possessing child pornography.

He’s also been listed on the sex offender registry and will have to abide by multiple conditions related to his access to children for the next 20 years.

According to the BC ICE statement, the leader of the group Daigle was involved with has pleaded guilty to one count of transportation of child pornography in North Carolina and received 64 months of imprisonment.

“Child sexual exploitation offences have steadily increased across the province and have a substantial impact on our communities, big and small,” wrote BC ICE Staff Sgt. Natalie Davis.

“Our investigators work tirelessly alongside our national and international law enforcement partners to target those utilizing the internet to harm and exploit children, rescue child victims, and bring child exploitation offenders to justice.”

According to recent data by Statistics Canada, police-reported cases of online child sexual exploitation more than tripled across the nation in an eight year period—from 50 cases per 100,00 children in 2014 to 160 in 2022.

Researchers found this increase was largely driven by a nearly fourfold rise in the distribution of child pornography.

BC ICE is urging anyone with information about suspect child exploitation to contact their local police.