PBC Blog · Police accountability / child exploitation / source trail

OPP Project Time: the public names, the withheld labels, and the demand for answers

An Instagram Reel asks why OPP published some names but left many adult entries as “ADULT MALE” or “ADULT FEMALE” in a province-wide child sexual exploitation operation. PBC checked the Reel against the OPP-linked addendum and media reports.

Content note: This article concerns child sexual abuse and exploitation material. It names only accused persons already publicly named in the OPP-linked addendum. It does not name youth, victims, or infer identities behind withheld labels.

Short verdict

The Reel’s core complaint has a real source trail. OPP/media reported Project Time as a province-wide online child sexual exploitation operation with 63 individuals charged, 213 charges laid and 51 victims identified. The downloadable addendum linked by CambridgeToday publicly names 17 accused persons, while many other entries are listed only as ADULT MALE/FEMALE and three are listed as YOUTH MALE. PBC found no official accused-person photos in the checked addendum or media reports.

The strongest public-interest demand is not to guess names. It is to demand an OPP/Attorney General explanation: what legal rule, court order, victim-protection issue, youth-law rule or operational reason caused adult names to be withheld in some rows but not others?

Numbers from the source trail

63

Individuals reported charged/arrested by OPP/CambridgeToday/TodaysNorthumberland.

213

Charges reported in the OPP release carried by CambridgeToday.

51 / 52

Victims identified. CambridgeToday says 51; Kingstonist says 52. PBC labels this as a source variance.

17

Publicly named accused located in the downloaded OPP addendum text.

Publicly named in the OPP-linked addendum

These are not convictions. Charges are allegations unless and until proven in court. They are names, ages, residences and charge summaries as publicly listed in the OPP-linked addendum. Court outcomes must be verified separately.

Name	Age	Residence	Charge summary from addendum
Howard Smith	57	Barrie, ON	Possession; distribution; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material
Jean (Nicolas) Von Kim	39	Barrie, ON	Possession; distribution; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material
William Paul O’Brien	45	Belleville, ON	Possession x2; distribution x2; making x2 child sexual abuse & exploitation material; firearm offences
Christopher DeGraaf	34	Brantford, ON	Possession; make available; distribution child sexual abuse & exploitation material
Richard Comeau	66	Brantford, ON	Possession x2; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material; firearm offences
Shane Pankhurst	40	Brantford, ON	Fail to comply with order
Robert Craig	45	Chatham, ON	Possession; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material; bestiality
Forest Lachange	35	Chatham, ON	Possession; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material
Tristan Wabano	25	Sudbury, ON	Accessing x5; possession x5 child sexual abuse & exploitation material
Thomas Rogers	35	Kingston, ON	Fail to comply with prohibition order x2
James Glenn	79	Kingston, ON	Possession x2; accessing x2; make available x2 child sexual abuse & exploitation material
Minyang Fan	24	Kingston, ON	Possession x2; accessing; make available child sexual abuse & exploitation material; fail to comply release order x5
Yuheng Dai	26	Kingston, ON	Possession child sexual abuse & exploitation material; fail to comply release order x3
Kevan Whalen	37	Quinte West, ON	Possession x2; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material
Mattias Chicoine	22	Ottawa, ON	Possession; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material
Michael Scorgie	50	Thunder Bay, ON	Possession; making child sexual abuse & exploitation material; agreement/arrangement sexual offence against child x3; luring under 16 x2
Stephen Pike	36	Cambridge, ON	Possession; accessing child sexual abuse & exploitation material

Withheld names

The addendum also lists many adult entries only as ADULT MALE or ADULT FEMALE, plus three YOUTH MALE entries. PBC does not infer or publish hidden identities. Youth names should remain protected where youth criminal-law privacy rules apply. But adults are a fair transparency question.

The article demand is simple: if OPP can name 17 accused adults, the public deserves to know why other adult entries were withheld. If there is a publication ban, victim-identification risk, undercover/ongoing-investigation reason, or court order, say that plainly.

Photos

No official accused-person photos were found in the OPP addendum or checked reports. PBC will not use private social-media photos or face-match people from the internet. If police or courts publish official photos later, those can be added with source labels.

What the Reel got right and what needs caution

Point	Label	Why
There was an OPP-linked list connected to 63 charged in a child exploitation operation.	Confirmed	CambridgeToday/OPP release and addendum PDF.
Some names are public and some are withheld.	Confirmed	The addendum contains named entries and ADULT/YOUTH labels.
All withheld adults are being “protected” for improper reasons.	Not proven	No source found explaining the withholding reason. PBC demands an explanation but does not invent motive.
The public deserves adult-name transparency in serious child-exploitation charges.	Editorial position	Balanced against publication bans, victim/youth protection, trial fairness and ongoing investigation needs.