A 34 year old man has been extradited to Canada after officers from Kent Police’s Public Protection Unit arrested him in Ashford earlier this year.
John Cox, 34, an IT specialist who attempted to use anti-tracking methods to thwart attempts by detectives, was back in the custody of Saanich (Canadian) Police today (Tuesday 8 June) after being on the run for three months.
Cox, a Canadian national, had fled Saanich, Canada where he was due to stand trial for nine child sex offences including grooming and possession of indecent images of children, two firearms offences and breach of recognizance.
Using different aliases of Sean Pulsen and Jean Guillaume and using IT software and encryption to disguise his online identity, Cox attempted to frustrate law enforcement attempts to track him down.
Kent Police’s Detective Inspector Matthew Long said: ‘Public protection is Kent Police’s priority. Officers worked swiftly in order to ensure this man did not pose any risk within our community. I am pleased he has now been extradited back to Canada where he will face the charges put to him.
‘We will not tolerate anyone who puts children at risk within our county and will work with other agencies in this country and abroad, to ensure crimes against children are stopped.’
Officers from the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre tracked Cox’s movements to Kent and officers from Kent Police’s Public Protection Crime Unit (PPCU), based at police headquarters and South Kent specialist Public Protection Officers, carried out local enquiries in order to secure an international arrest warrant. Kent officers acted quickly and arrested Cox on 5 May. He was held in custody and transferred to the Metropolitan Police Extradition Unit who have secured Cox’s return back to Canada.
Detective Inspector Jon Holl from South Kent Public Protection Unit praised the effectiveness of working relationships between agencies and the quality of his staff saying: ‘This is a practical example of the effectiveness of law enforcement agencies from local to international level working together to protect children in Ashford and across the UK. I am immensely proud of my highly motivated and specialist team of investigators, often working invisibly to the general public to protect our children.’
Jim Gamble, Chief Executive of the Child Exploitation Online Protection (CEOP) Centre: ‘This potentially dangerous individual tried very hard to cover his tracks but he had underestimated the determination of CEOP and Kent Police officers to capture him. Hopefully Cox – and other suspected child sex offenders – will realise that the UK is not a safe place for them.’
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