Thunder Bay – NEWS – A Thunder Bay resident has been charged with multiple child pornography offences after an intensive investigation by the Thunder Bay Police Service Cyber Crime Unit.
The investigation began in February 2024 when the Cyber Crime Unit received information suggesting that a local internet user was involved in uploading material consistent with child pornography. Acting on this information, officers executed a search warrant at a residence on May 30, seizing multiple electronic devices.
On the morning of June 13, the suspect, Austin Edward Grimes Hale, 30, of Thunder Bay, turned himself in to the police. He has been charged with two offences: Possession of Child Pornography and Accessing Child Pornography. Hale appeared in court on Thursday and was released with conditions pending further court proceedings.
Penalties Upon Conviction:
- Possession of Child Pornography: Conviction can result in a minimum of six months to a maximum of five years imprisonment.
- Accessing Child Pornography: Conviction can result in a minimum of one year to a maximum of ten years imprisonment.
The Thunder Bay Police Service urges anyone with information that could aid the investigation to contact Detective Constable Joel Manherz at (807) 684-1200 ext. 4115.
Anonymous tips can be submitted through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.p3tips.com. Reports of online child exploitation can also be made to Canada’s National Tipline at cybertip.ca.
