Kitchener minor a victim of 'child sextortion scheme' in Minnesota, U.S.

Waterloo Regional Police cruiser is seen in Kitchener in 2015. (CTV News)

What the United States Attorney’s Office is calling a “child sextortion scheme” run by a man from Coon Rapids, Minnesota involved a minor from Kitchener, Ont.

An investigation conducted by law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and Waterloo Regional Police Service, resulted in a 24-year-old man being sentenced to 12 years in prison followed by 12 years of supervised release for a sextortion scheme that targeted minors through social media and an online gaming forum, according the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota.

Officials said Glen Robert Anderson was sentenced on March 15 – nearly a year after pleading guilty to two counts of production of child pornography, one count of enticement of a minor and one count of interstate communications with intent to extort.

In an email to CTV News Kitchener, a spokesperson for WRPS said a victim was from Kitchener, and one of the police service investigators assisted. They were not able to provide any further information.

According to the Attorney’s office, Anderson previously worked as a middle school paraprofessional in special education.

“Anderson used multiple internet applications and social media accounts for email, file sharing, and chatting with minors, including Snapchat and Grindr,” a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota said.

The release continues to say: “Anderson also owned and administered an online gaming forum. To participate in the forum, users were required to submit an application, which included the age of the user.”

Due to the included ages, the attorney’s office said Anderson knew many of the uses were minors born between April 1, 2016 and August 20, 2021.

“Anderson used his position as the forum administrator to groom minors to produce child pornography and engage in sexual activity with him, including by providing minors with in-game perks, privileges, and other gifts,” the Attorney’s office said.

The Attorney’s office said one example of the sextortion was when Anderson “coerced a 13-year-old victim to engage in sexually explicit acts for the purpose of producing images and videos.”

Anderson later threatened to release those sexually explicit images if the victim did not respond to his demands.