Former Sudbury reporter pleads guilty in child pornography case
WARNING – Graphic details of online sexual child abuse material may be disturbing to some readers.
A former Sudbury reporter has pleaded guilty to one charge related to online child sexual abuse material during a virtual court hearing Tuesday morning, avoiding a trial.
Callam Senyk-O'Flanagan, known professionally as Callam Rodya, was 32-years-old when he was identified by Greater Sudbury Police Service after downloading online child sexual abuse material using a file-sharing site between Nov. 14, 2018, and Feb. 13, 2019, Assistant Crown Attorney Christina Croteau read as part of the agreed statement of facts in the case.
Det. Const. Chris Kerr was reviewing undercover software and found it had downloaded a video depicting child sexual abuse at 1:18 a.m. on Nov. 15, 2018. The internet provider complied with the police request to supply the address linked to the account to which Senyk-O'Flanagan was subscribed.
The disturbing video has been identified to be of a 10- to 12-year-old girl from the U.S. being filmed while her father raped her and is part of a known child sexual abuse video series.
Officers raided his apartment on Riverside Drive on Feb. 13, 2019, and located evidence on multiple electronic devices, including a laptop and several storage devices, as well as a small baggy of suspected cocaine.
Senyk-O'Flanagan was charged with several counts of possession of, accessing, and making available child pornography, and drug possession. He was released on bail shortly after his arrest. The drug possession charge was dropped this summer.
A forensic analysis of his electronic devices found the video file that had been uploaded to the file-sharing program found by police as well as a total of 464 images identified as child pornography.
A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for Dec. 2.
Under Indecent Acts section 173.1 of Canada's Criminal Code, of which Senyk-O'Flanagan has pleaded guilty to, "everyone who wilfully does an indecent act in a public place in the presence of one or more persons, or in any place with intent to insult or offend any person, is guilty of an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years; or is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction."
In the interim, an assessment will be done to determine if electronic monitoring will be available.
He is a former reporter with Sudbury.com and CTV Northern Ontario.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Angst and calls for resting places as Surrey, B.C., pet cemetery development continues
A single headstone is all that remains of dozens of markers for long-buried pets in a subdivision in Surrey’s Newton neighbourhood, where a half-acre parcel bears a large sign announcing the proposed construction of new homes.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.