Jan 08, 2015

Barrie Air Cadets commander, RCMP officer facing child

pornography charges

Cadet Captain Collin Christopher Scott – Commanding Officer

File photo

Ontario Provincial Police

Barrie Advance

By Janis Ramsay

A police officer and an Air Cadets officer are among three Barrie men facing child pornography charges.

Local Air Cadets Maj. Collin Christopher Scott, 48, and RCMP officer Michael Gavin Thomander, 39, as well as 28-year-old Anthony Pitocco, were held for bail hearings today after being charged.

OPP Det.-Sgt. Terry Paddon said police searched Scott’s home yesterday and seized three computers containing electronic evidence.

Paddon said officers believe Scott shared images with an American citizen and were tipped off by the South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

Scott, Thomander and Pitocco do not know each other, Paddon said.

“There is no relation, other than they were sharing images over the Internet. They’re just making them available,” Paddon said. “However, two individuals lived a couple of houses apart.”

Paddon said Thomander and Pitocco were charged as a result of a local undercover investigation.

Thomander is charged with two counts of possession of child pornography, one count of accessing child pornography and one count of making available child pornography.

Scott is charged with two counts of possession of child pornography and one count of transmitting child pornography.

Pitocco is charged with two counts of possession of child pornography, one count of accessing child pornography and one count of making available child pornography.

RCMP spokesperson Richard Rollings said Thomander is posted in the Greater Toronto Area, but refused to share his employment history.

“He is not posted in any section that has any direct dealings with children or the general public, for that matter,” Rollings said.

Rollings said once the RCMP was notified about the OPP investigation, it immediately started its own review.

“That review allows us to initiate code of Conduct investigation as well as suspend a member with or without pay,” he said, adding he should know the results of the review by the end of the day.

“Someone could be suspended with pay in the interim and that could change to without pay in the foreseeable future.”

Canadian Forces Base Borden spokesperson Capt. Cory Lohnes said Scott was relieved of his military duties and suspended from all cadet activities. He added Scott would likely never again be involved in cadets. “One criteria we have is you have to have a clear criminal reference check and vulnerable sector screening,” said Lohnes, who met with 130 cadets and their parents Monday to discuss the charges. Once a person is formally charged — even if they are acquitted of the crime and later pardoned — it negates them from being involved with the Canadian Armed Forces, he said. He said an internal review was being done to see if there would be any career or disciplinary action for Scott. In the meantime, Capt. J.P. Johnson stepped in as commanding officer of the local air cadets, he said. Lohnes said the charges should not reflect what the cadet program means to the community. “There are 3,500 officers involved in the program in Ontario and a vast majority are volunteers,” Lohnes said. Thomander is back in court Feb. 2, while Scott and Pitocco will be back in court Feb. 9. -This story has been updated from a previous version