Authorities say a 32-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection with an investigation in child pornography in Medicine Hat.

The operation began in April 2017 when ALERT’s Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) Unit received a tip from U.S. authorities about a suspect in that community uploading child pornography to the Internet.

ICE, with the help of the Medicine Hat Police Service, executed a warrant on a home in the community on July 13, 2017.

Officers seized a number of electronic devices from the basement of the home as well as a 12-gauge sawed-off shotgun.

An initial search of the evidence uncovered nearly 3,000 images of known child pornography, but a more thorough search is planned by ICE’s forensic investigators.

Tyler Falkeisen, 32, was arrested and has been charged with:

  • possessing child pornography
  • accessing child pornography
  • making child pornography available
  • unauthorized possession of a firearm
  • possession of a prohibited weapon
  • unsafe storage of a firearm

Police say there is no evidence that he came into contact with any children and no children are in his care.

He has made his first court appearance and was released on a number of conditions, including not possessing firearms, not possessing cameras or video recording devices, not possessing computers or smartphones, not having Internet access at home, not using social media and not having contact with any child under the age of 18 without supervision.

Anyone with information about this investigation or any child exploitation offence is encouraged to contact local police or www.cybertip.ca.