Skip to content

Vancouver man facing 26 charges in global child pornography probe

The New Zealand investigation, known as Operation H, investigated people around the world
28334414_web1_laptop-gd73eb7f06_1280
Kristjon Olson, 40, is facing 26 charges including the making, distributing and posessing of child pornoraphy, as well as communicating with a person under the age of 16 for a sexual purpose, extortion and other related charges. (Pixabay photo)

A Vancouver man is being accused of distributing child pornography in connection to a 22-month global investigation by local police.

Kristjon Olson, 40, is facing 26 charges including the making, distributing and posessing of child pornoraphy, as well as communicating with a person under the age of 16 for a sexual purpose, extortion and other related charges.

Vancouver police said in a statement Wednesday (March 2) that the investigation was launched in April 2020, after New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs identified a number of accounts on an international cloud storage platform that were linked to suspects in Vancouver who were viewing and sharing child pornography. The New Zealand investigation, known as Operation H, targeted people who made and shared child sexual abuse material around the world.

Olson was living in East Vancouver between January 2019 and June 2020, according to police.

Sgt. Steve Addison said victims lived in Canada and the United States.

“Online child exploitation cases are some of the most complex and disturbing for police, in part due to their digital nature and because the victims are often located around the world.”

Olson is set to appear in court on March 15.

RELATED: 47 Canadians charged in global online child sex exploitation investigation


@ashwadhwani
ashley.wadhwani@bpdigital.ca

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.



About the Author: Ashley Wadhwani-Smith

I began my journalistic journey at Black Press Media as a community reporter in my hometown of Maple Ridge, B.C.
Read more