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Alleged child pornographer’s rights violation bid rejected

Former educational assistant and alleged possessor of child pornography John Cafferata was unsuccessful in a bid to prove that his Canadian Charter…

Former educational assistant and alleged possessor of child pornography John Cafferata was unsuccessful in a bid to prove that his Canadian Charter rights were violated when Yukon RCMP searched his Teslin home in 2007.

Court documents allege Cafferata was found in possession of “a collection of printed photographs of naked female children.”

The 55-year-old alleged his “right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure” had been violated.

Cafferata’s name was first linked to known child-pornography websites by Operation Emissary, an investigation launched by the New Jersey office of US Immigration and Customs enforcement. The information was forwarded to Canada’s National Child Exploitation Co-ordination Centre, which alerted the Yukon RCMP.

Through examination of bank records, investigators determined that Cafferata had provided US$79.99 to subscribe to a child pornography website.

Cafferata’s username for the site, “knobah,” matched the letters on his vanity licence plate, noted the RCMP.

The RCMP had sufficient evidence to obtain a search warrant, and did not violate Cafferata’s rights, ruled Yukon Territorial Justice Michael Cozens in late December.

Cafferata has been charged with accessing child pornography and possessing child pornography.

If Cozens had ruled in Cafferata’s favour, evidence seized at Cafferata’s apartment would have been ruled as inadmissible at his upcoming trial.