Surrey Mountie charged with child luring after Creep Catchers sting

A Surrey Mountie has been charged with luring a child, after he was allegedly filmed by an activist with Creep Catchers, a vigilante website dedicated to rooting out pedophiles.

The charges allege RCMP Const. Dario Devic communicated with a person he believed to be under the age of 16 between August 29, and September 7.

It is an offence to communicate by means of telecommunication with a person who is under the age of 16, or who is believed to be under the age of 16, for the purpose of facilitating sexual conduct.

It should be noted Devic has not been charged with Breach of Trust by a Public Officer, after the Criminal Justice Branch concluded it did not meet its “charge assessment standard.”

A release from the branch said it cannot comment further on the issue:

“As this matter remains before the Court, CJB is unable to release additional information
or comment further at this time, either about the charge that has been approved or the
reasons for not proceeding with a prosecution for Breach of Trust by a Public Officer.”

Creep Catchers, which now has chapters in Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Ontario, as well as BC, works by having activists pose as underage people online.

They then lure alleged predators to a public meeting, where their reaction is then filmed and published online, along with messages and photos, for the public to see.

According to a previous release, RCMP were alerted to a Creep Catchers sting operation involving a Surrey officer when it was streamed live on Facebook earlier in September.

Devic was arrested on September 9 and has subsequently been released on bail. He will next appear Surrey Provincial Court on October 19.