‘Strong message must be sent’: 19 years for internet luring, child porn By: Dean Pritchard Posted: 7:00 PM CST Friday, Nov. 25, 2022

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An online sex predator who victimized hundreds of children across the globe and enlisted a network of other pedophiles to do the same has been sentenced to 19 years in prison.

The sentence is believed to be the longest imposed in Canada for similar offences not involving the direct, physical sexual abuse of children.

Kenneth Emerson, 31, previously pleaded guilty to two counts of internet luring and one count each of making child pornography, making written child pornography, possession of child pornography, distribution of child pornography, and invitation to sexual touching.

The Winnipeg resident’s arrest in July 2020 led to the discovery of tens of thousands of pages of internet chat room logs in which he manipulated child victims into performing sex acts for him.

The fact Emerson — who identifies as non-binary — did not abuse the victims in person makes the crimes no less serious, provincial court Judge Wanda Garreck said at a sentencing hearing Thursday.

“The belief Emerson has or others may have that it is less egregious because there was no hands-on abuse and no forced participation is an idea that must be smashed and a strong message must be sent that the focus must be on prevention… of sexual violence against children and not on the physical actions of the abuser,” Garreck said.

Emerson’s victims included children in Canada, the U.S., U.K., Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Ireland, Romania, Guatemala and Sweden.

Emerson came to police attention in June 2020, after a woman reported finding “disturbing” chats on her 12-year-old son’s Instagram account, court heard at a sentencing hearing in July.

Emerson befriended the boy over the social medial platform a month earlier, pretending to be a 14-year-old boy. Emerson persuaded the boy to give him a pair of his underwear in exchange for $5.

The boy expressed misgivings but agreed to drop off his underwear under a bench at a park near his home.

Emerson, who did not meet with the boy in person, later asked for another pair of underwear, this time telling him to wear it for three days and to provide him with photos before completing the exchange. The boy provided Emerson with the photos but not the underwear before his mother discovered the communications and contacted police.

An investigator with the Winnipeg Police Service internet child exploitation unit followed Emerson’s Instagram account, identifying himself as a 12-year-old boy. Emerson messaged the officer 11 minutes later.

Emerson again identified as a 14-year-old boy and over the next two weeks engaged in graphic sexual talk with the officer before asking him to drop off a “used” sock at a park picnic table. When Emerson picked up the sock, police made the arrest.

A subsequent analysis of Emerson’s cellphone uncovered tens of thousands of pages of online chats, many of them over platforms frequented by child sex predators due to their anonymity features.

Emerson was the creator and administrator of more than two dozen chat groups which required children to provide nude pictures of themselves, telling the children the images were necessary to prove they weren’t pedophiles.

Children “are so dumb about their safety,” Emerson disclosed in a chat room frequented by adult pedophiles.

Emerson “used vulgar and graphic description and directions to exploit numerous children to participate in the production of sex abuse material online for the accused’s sexual gratification,” Garreck said.

The Winnipeg resident encouraged other pedophiles in abusing children, including one man who was pushed to abuse his own brother. In other instances Emerson connected pedophiles with children in their area who had already been victimized online and advised them how to avoid detection.

Emerson “manipulated” children into believing the abuse was OK because there was no force involved, Garreck said.

“While there is no evidence Emerson was engaged in actual physical hands-on sexual assault of anyone, Emerson certainly bragged online about doing that, fantasized about it and continuously tricked children into believing they were engaging with other teens,” the judge said.

According to a pre-sentence report prepared for court, Emerson suffered childhood sexual abuse and victimization and “significant bullying” related to gender identity.

“The childhood traumas clearly had an impact on Emerson,” Garreck said.

Sentences for sex crimes against children have been steadily increasing since a 2020 decision by the Supreme Court of Canada that redefined how the courts should deal with offenders.

Justyn Friesen of Winnipeg was sentenced in 2017 to six years in prison for child sex crimes. The sentence was reduced to 4 1/2 years on appeal, but later restored to six by the Supreme Court, which ruled sentences handed to child sex offenders should increase in recognition of the long-lasting harm their crimes cause victims.

“Friesen is the most recent acknowledgment by the Supreme Court that sexual offences against children are violent offences that wrongfully exploit children’s vulnerability and cause profound harm to children, families and communities,” Garreck said. “The clear message is that sentences must increase.”

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca

Dean Pritchard
Courts reporter

Someone once said a journalist is just a reporter in a good suit. Dean Pritchard doesn’t own a good suit. But he knows a good lawsuit.

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