B.C. man pleads guilty to charges of sextorting teens across Canada

A Burnaby, B.C., man has pleaded guilty to charges related to the online sexual extortion of teens in several Canadian provinces.

Anwer Jelassi, now 21, pled guilty on Dec. 22 to extortion against eight victims between Oct. 14 and Nov. 8 in 2022, extortion from Dec. 22 to 25, 2023, secretly recording sexual activity on or about Dec. 22, 2023, distribution of child pornography from Oct. 17 to 30, 2022, and publication of intimate images without consent from Oct. 14, 2022 to Jan. 23, 2023.

The BC Prosecution Service said Jelassi also pleaded guilty to breach of undertaking from Dec. 22, 2023.

All offences are alleged to have occurred in Burnaby, the Prosecution Service said.

Mounties began investigating the case after victims in Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario reported being extorted by someone they’d met on social media with whom they’d shared explicit images.

Burnaby RCMP alleged the suspect then threatened to share the images with the victims’ social networks if they didn’t pay him money.

The majority of the victims were between the ages of 15 and 18, according to police.

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Jelassi’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 5, 2026.

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