The Surrey RCMP and U.S. Department of Homeland Security worked in concert to track down, arrest, and charge an American man accused of luring a child in Surrey.
Kevin McCarty, 35, from Oregon, was arrested in California by Homeland Security Investigations agents on Nov. 18 after a joint investigation that originated in Surrey, Surrey RCMP said in a news release.
McCarty, who police said used an alias, is being accused of contacting and communicating with a 14-year-old Surrey youth on social media. He allegedly groomed the youth for a sexual purpose, and coerced them to create and distribute self-exploitative sexual material, police said.
Surrey RCMP’s digital forensic triage services and internet child exploitation units worked with the victim to determine the suspect was American. The information was forwarded to Homeland Security, who were able to identify additional victims.
The District of Oregon has charged McCarty with sexual exploitation of children, distribution of child pornography, cyber-stalking, online enticement of a minor, and transferring obscene material to a minor.
“One of the most important outcomes is that the images and videos shared in this investigation are now part of Project Arachnid.” Says Corporal Danielle Pollock of the Surrey RCMP Internet Child Exploitation Unit. “Project Arachnid helps break the cycle of the distribution of these images. This can help address victims’ fears that someone they know may come across their image on the internet.”
For more information about Project Arachnid, click here.
