Cape Breton man faces 64 charges, including sex assault and human trafficking

CITYnews halifax / By The Canadian Press

SYDNEY, N.S. — Police have charged a Cape Breton man with 64 crimes, including human trafficking and sexual assault, after an investigation involving multiple agencies.

Investigators say 17 women have come forward to report alleged offences going back to 2008, as part of a probe by the province’s human trafficking unit, the Cape Breton Regional Police Service and the RCMP.

Police arrested 45-year-old Paul Theriault Jr., of Dominion, N.S., at a home in the Cape Breton community on Wednesday.

The investigation, which began in October 2021, allegedly uncovered evidence that women were video recorded without their consent and the videos were posted and sold online.

In addition to sexual assault and human trafficking, Theriault is charged with obtaining sexual services for consideration, communication for the purpose of obtaining sexual services, procuring, sexual assault causing bodily harm and publishing intimate images without consent.

He’s also charged with voyeurism, extortion, sexual interference, possessing child pornography, trafficking in substances, luring a child by telecommunication, sexual touching, unauthorized weapons possession, and administering a noxious substance.

Theriault was remanded into custody and will appear in Sydney provincial court on Dec. 12.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 8, 2023.

The Canadian Press