Alleged Internet lurer may have ties to Sudbury

Greater Sudbury Police Service is helping Durham Regional Police identify any potential victims in an Internet luring investigation.

Kyle McLauchlan, a 50-year-old Whitby man, is charged with five counts of luring using social media.

After a four-month undercover investigation using social media, the Durham Regional Police Internet Child Exploitation Unit (ICE) intercepted McLauchlan attempting to lure a child.

ICE officers posed as a 14-year-old girl online and arranged to meet the suspect at a Whitby bus stop. On June 13, 2013, at about 7 a.m., investigators intercepted the suspect as he was walking to the bus stop. He was arrested without incident.

A short time later, members of Durham Regional Police Service executed a search warrant at McLauchlan's Whitby home. One computer was seized.

Police have learned that McLauchlan has been posing as a photographer and modelling agent online. He has ties to the Kitchener area, but also may have been trying to contact youth in Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Hamilton and Sudbury, as well as in Durham Region.

Police are asking for anyone who has had contact with McLauchlan to call police.

Anyone with any new information that might assist investigators is asked to contact Greater Sudbury Police Services Cyber Crime Unit.

Anonymous tips can be made to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS). Tipsters are eligible for a cash reward of up to $2,000.

Parents are reminded to monitor their children's computers on a regular basis and ensure they know who their children are talking to online. Parents should also keep a watch on modelling agents or photographers contacting their children.

If you are contacted by a person, parents are encouraged to investigate to ensure the agency is real.