Brave 8-year-old in West Hants leads police to arrest in California

CITYnews halifax / By Natasha O’Neill

An 8-year-old “bravely” alerted police that someone was threatening to hurt them and their family if they didn’t send intimate images through a social media platform.

According to the Nova Scotia RCMP, the child from the West Hants area called officers in May 2023. The responding officer went to the child’s home to start an investigation. The evidence showed someone was attempting to exploit and extort the child and had sent the victim intimate images, a press release from RCMP reads.

Over the investigation, officials confirmed the suspect’s IP address was in California. Officers with the Internet Child Exploitation Unit then connected with the United States Homeland Security Investigations based out of the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa.

From there, in May 2024, police were able to arrest a 38-year-old man in California who admitted to victimizing more than 20 children, including the one in West Hants.

Due to the efforts started by the 8-year-old and their parent, police said they were able to track down the person.