A Scarborough man has been convicted as a result of a worldwide child pornography investigation led by Toronto police.
Louis Brunelle, 54, of Scarborough, was convicted of possession of child pornography, and sentenced to 15 months in jail and one year probation.
He had been charged with three counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of making child pornography, and accessing child pornography.
Brunelle is one of five Toronto men convicted of charges stemming from the investigation.
On Nov. 14, Toronto police released the five names, as well as the names of four others facing charges in relation to the investigation, dubbed Project Spade.
The three-year international initiative discovered that Brian Way, 42, of Toronto, distributed, profited from and exported/imported child pornography, police said.
According to police, there have been 341 arrests worldwide and 386 children have been saved from sexual exploitation as a result of Project Spade.
The fact that five people have already been convicted “sends a strong message”, said Det. Paul Krawczyk of Toronto police’s child exploitation unit.