12 charges laid against former North Vancouver teacher accused of historical sex assault against students

Warning: This story contains details of sexual abuse.

Twelve charges have been laid against a former North Vancouver teacher accused of multiple counts of historic sexual assault against students.

In a press conference late Thursday, North Vancouver RCMP said the B.C. Prosecution Service has charged 83-year-old Brian Moore with 12 counts of sexual offences, including 10 counts of indecent assault on a male, one count of sexual touching of a person under 14, and one count of sexual assault.

RCMP said most of the offences occurred while Moore was a teacher at Upper Lynn Valley Elementary between 1970 and 1982, though one of the offences is alleged to have occurred as recently as 2007. All the offences involved boys age 11 and 12.

RCMP first issued a press release about the case in August 2022, saying the former school teacher was arrested at his home for seven counts of indecent assault against seven students in the '70s and '80s. The statement also asked any other potential victims to come forward.

North Vancouver RCMP Const. Mansoor Sahak said that after the release, several additional victims came forward to provide further witness statements. And while the Crown is pressing charges related to 11 alleged victims, Sahak said RCMP is aware of more.

"The key driver was victims coming forward and providing statements. and providing that comprehensive package to the BC prosecution service," said Sahak, adding it's rare to see cases where charges are laid nearly four decades after an alleged crime.

"These investigations are very complex and they take a lengthy amount of time."

Moore also faces a proposed class action lawsuit by former students, led by plaintiff Dennis Cooper. In a notice of civil claim filed in August of 2022, Cooper alleges Moore groomed and sexually assaulted him and others over the course of several field trips throughout their Grade 6 year.

Speaking in North Vancouver on Thursday evening, Cooper said the announcement of charges is a first step in a long process, over 40 years after the alleged abuse.

"For many of the guys they've carried this secret with them for most of their adult lives ... this is a very important day," he said.

"I would hope that if people are carrying a long, dark secret, that this helps them open the door."

None of the allegations have been proven in court. Moore is currently not in custody, nor is he under conditions.

Behaviour detailed in claim

The notice of claim filed in civil court in August details an alleged pattern of behaviour where Moore would take students on day trips and overnight trips as part of an "Outdoor School" program, where the inappropriate behaviour would take place.

The document describes an excursion to Deep Cove to go water skiing, during which Moore allegedly asked Cooper, then 11, to not wear underwear or clothes under his wet suit, and then inappropriately touched Cooper on his genitals while he was putting it on. On another Grade 6 trip to go swimming at Simon Fraser University, Cooper alleges that Moore instructed the students to bathe with him naked.

In another instance, Moore allegedly offered driving lessons to his students in his personal vehicle, a blue Barracuda, where he would ask them to sit on his lap. 

Later in the Grade 6 year, Moore arranged to take students on ski trips to Penticton and Vernon. During the trip he allegedly "demonstrated masturbation on himself" and ejaculated in front of the students, before seeking oral sex from Cooper, which Cooper refused.

Finally, it describes a camping trip to Shuswap Lake in the summer after Cooper's Grade 6 year. Moore allegedly instructed Cooper and others to swim with him naked, and that night, climbed into his sleeping bag.

North Vancouver RCMP Victim Services Unit can be reached 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 604-969-7540.