Edmonton man charged after alleged sexual assault of toddler in Vietnam

An Edmonton man has been charged with five sexual offences after investigators allege he was involved in a livestreamed sexual assault of a toddler in Vietnam.

Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) said in a news release Thursday that a suspect was identified in an investigation by ALERT's Internet Child Exploitation unit, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations and Vietnamese authorities. 

Christopher Webber, 55, faces charges of sexual interference, making arrangements to commit a sexual offence against a child, and making, possessing and accessing child pornography. He was arrested on May 15 with help from Edmonton Police Service, the news release said. 

Webber, a former City of Edmonton employee, participated in the video recording remotely, allegedly directing the sexual abuse. The livestream was recorded sometime between 2021 and 2022, ALERT said. 

The ALERT release said international authorities identified the child and the assailant — both of which were in Vietnam. It said the child was believed to be two to three years old at the time.

Sandy Jung, a professor at MacEwan who studies sexual abuse, said in an interview with CBC that these cases are more common than people may expect.

"The unfortunate thing is that this happens relatively frequently because the anonymity and the safety of hiding IP addresses and physical locations makes it really an easily accessible medium," Jung said.

She added that this is part of a trend where sexual offenders may not necessarily be committing abusive acts directly.

"It makes the abuser even more distant from the sexual assault and actually increases the anonymity," Jung said. 

"It's a little bit frightening when you think about the technology and that people don't necessarily need to be in the room actually committing these acts anymore."

ALERT said the case can serve as an example.

"Let this also be a warning to offenders that law enforcement will go to great lengths to identify them, and hold them accountable," acting Sgt. Matthew Pepper said in the statement.

Webber's employment profile on LinkedIn shows he worked as a 911 dispatcher with the city. 

In a statement Friday, officials with Edmonton Fire Rescue Services said Webber has tendered his resignation with the city and that he no longer has access to city facilities or equipment. 

"As this matter is now before the courts, Edmonton Fire Rescue Services and the City of Edmonton must respect the process and the confidentiality of the parties involved and refrain from any further public comment," the statement said.  

Webber was released from custody and is set to appear in court on June 11.