A dozen GTA men charged in child sex sting operation by Durham cops
· Toronto Sun
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Durham police have arrested and charged 12 men from the GTA with 37 collective charges during a child sexual exploitation investigation known as Project Firebird.
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Over 10 days in October, investigators targeted individuals seeking to purchase sexual services from persons they believed to be 15 years of age and as part of the initiative, an online advertisement was placed and it received more than 8,000 views.
The investigation allegedly resulted in numerous individuals attempting to arrange meetings for sexual services with someone they believed to be a minor.
Charged are: Mohamed Shaffee, 64, of Markham; Joshua Reid, 49, of Simcoe; Andre McGann, 43, of Scarborough; Mayan Ranjan, 39, of Ajax; Zaheed Mohamed, 40 of Brampton; Suresh Ravuru, 41, of Ajax; Clement Chan, 36, of Whitby; Mohammad Mabboobi, 22, of Oshawa; MD Uzzal Mridha, 49, of Scarborough; Samiullah Azizi, 29, of Clarington; Vincent Haresco, 46, of Oshawa; and Devin Hill, 42, of Clarington.
They are all charged with luring a person for the purpose of obtaining sexual services under 18, obtaining sexual services under 18 and invitation to sexual touching under 16.
One of the accused has an additional drug charge
McGann also faces an additional charge of possession of a schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking.
Durham police say Project Firebird demonstrates “the ongoing demand for the sexual exploitation of children online and highlights the importance of proactive investigative techniques in identifying offenders before harm can occur. DRPS remains committed to protecting vulnerable youth, disrupting human trafficking and child exploitation networks, and holding offenders accountable.”
Anyone with information about these incidents is asked to contact the Human Trafficking Unit at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 5600.