A former teacher has been sentenced to five years in prison in a child pornography and luring case.
Victor Ly, 33, was sentenced for luring young teenage girls online and forcing them to send graphic photos and videos of themselves. Some of the victims were his students.
The judge called the situation “a parent’s worst nightmare.”
Court heard that Ly used fake profiles on Snapchat and Facebook to lure his victims. In court, it was said that he preyed on girls as young as eight, and that there may have been as many as 170 victims around the world.
Local police were only able to identify about 60. Several lived in Waterloo Region and other parts of Ontario.
Ly pleaded guilty last month to 20 charges, including making child pornography, invitation to sexual touching, extortion and luring.
“He always wanted to accept responsibility for his actions, as you might have heard on the last occasion, very remorseful, he just wanted to do the right thing and make amends,” explains Lauren Wilhelm, Ly’s lawyer.
Court heard Friday morning that Ly had a list of former students that he had victimized.
Ly had reportedly been a teacher at private schools in Waterloo and Halton regions, but a publication ban was put on the school’s names to protect the identity of his victims.
At a January court appearance, the Crown sought a nine-year sentence. The defence had called for three.
