Two years in federal prison for possessing child pornography
A Belleville man was sentenced on April 11 to two years in federal prison for possession of child pornography.
Todd Brian Forgrave, 50, was charged following an investigation by the RCMP’s Internet Child Exploitation Unit, which led to the execution of a search warrant at a Belleville residence on Nov. 24, 2022. He pleaded guilty to the offence in January.
Judge Henrik Tonning also ordered Forgrave to register with the federal DNA database and placed him on the national sex offender registry for 20 years. He must not have any contact with children and is prohibited from attending public places where children are present. From now on, Forgrave’s use of the internet will be restricted.
Subscribe To Our Newsletter
Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.
You have successfully subscribed! A confirmation email has been sent to your email account. To complete your subscription, open the email and click on the confirmation link. (If you can't find it in your inbox, try your junk and spam folders.) If you'd like to receive our updates more than once a week, please click the "Manage your subscription" link at the bottom of your Newsletter.
“This is beyond the pale of human behaviour to involve yourself in this type of activity,” Judge Tonning told the accused. “Losing your job is an indication of the repugnance of society. Some children are abused for years and suffer significant harm.”
Forgrave had no prior criminal record. All electronic devices seized during the investigation were forfeited to the crown. He admitted to the judge he was in possession of a series of photos and videos containing child porn and that he viewed them, but he was not involved in distributing or trading in child pornography.
Crown Prosecutor Rachel Anstey told the court the graphic evidence would be sealed as part of the court record following the sentencing hearing, including several photos and videos of young children and related victim impact statements.
“This is a deliberate offence, not accidental or passive,” said Anstey. “They are real children. It is not a victimless crime.”
Defence Counsel Brent Dickinson said Forgrave was remorseful, sought counselling for pornography addiction, and was ready to go to jail.
“We submit it is a fit sentence,” said Dickinson. “It’s been going on for a long time for him and cost him his job. He has pled guilty and agrees with the sentence.”
Another accused, Stephen Warcop, 26, of Hartland, was charged following the execution of a search warrant at a residence in Hartland on Dec. 1, 2022. He pleaded not guilty, and a trial date was set for this month. Police seized several electronic devices during the investigation.
On Feb. 26, Warcop’s defence counsel requested he undergo a mental health assessment at Miramichi to determine criminal responsibility. A fitness hearing scheduled for April 7 was adjourned, and the assessment was extended.
Wotstak man has new charges
Takoda Louis Lee Christian, 19, of Wotstak (Woodstock First Nation), appeared in provincial court in custody by video on April 10 for a bail hearing on new charges laid by RCMP. He was released from custody with conditions including house arrest and wearing an electronic monitoring device attached to his ankle.
Christian returns to court for plea on April 15 at 9:30 a.m. He was charged with assaulting another man with a weapon (a knife), uttering threats and mischief causing property damage to a window in connection with an incident on April 8 in Lansdowne.
He also faces charges laid by Woodstock Police following an assault outside the Royal Canadian Legion on Nov. 14, 2024. Police were called to the scene, and a man was transported to hospital for treatment of serious injuries.
Christian was charged with aggravated assault, dangerous driving causing bodily harm, and failing to remain at the scene of an accident. He returns to court for plea on April 15 at 9:30 a.m.
Christian also appeared in provincial court in custody via teleconference on March 26 related to another violent assault at the Ayr Motor Centre in Woodstock.
Woodstock Police charged him with aggravated assault on March 25 at the recreational facility. He was released with conditions and returns to court for plea on April 15 at 9:30 a.m.
Woodstock Police said a 16-year-old victim suffered significant injuries in the incident and was transported to the Upper River Valley Hospital for treatment.
Arsenal of firearms focus of trial
The crown entered an arsenal of firearms into evidence during the trial of Stephen Perley, 28, of Neqotkuk (Tobique First Nation). He appeared in court in custody for his trial on April 10. After a half-day of testimony, Judge Henrik Tonning reserved his decision until noon on May 12.
RCMP charged Perley with unlawful transport of firearms (several rifles, a sawed-off, pump action shotgun, a survival gun, air pistols, a nine-millimetre carbine, magazines and ammunition), possession of prohibited firearms, two counts of transporting firearms carelessly, two counts of possessing firearms without a licence, and possession of a gun with the serial number altered in connection with an incident on Sept. 23, 2024, at Neqotkuk.
Perley appeared in court in custody on Nov. 4, 2024, and was denied bail. Crown Prosecutor Samantha Goodine is seeking a federal prison sentence for the accused.
On April 10, the court heard testimony from a neighbour who said Perley came to a back window of his home at night and dropped off a duffle bag and gun casing to hide in the bedroom closet. He was supposed to pay the neighbour for storing it.
Perley told his neighbour that an undercover police officer was at Neqotkuk and that he would be back soon for his gear. A search warrant was executed at Perley’s camper nearby about a week later. The neighbour said Perley didn’t return to his home. Three weeks later, he looked in his closet and opened the duffle bag. He got scared and went to the police to report the guns.
Perley testified at the trial and denied the allegations. He said his neighbour had a personal grievance against him, and he did not own the guns. His partner, Kathy Muller, testified she had never seen the firearms before, and they were never at her home in Perth-Andover.
Defence Counsel Alex Carleton argued there were holes in the crown’s case and the neighbour’s unreliable memory of events. Carleton said the neighbour may have been mistaken about who brought the guns to his house.
Perley appeared in provincial court in custody on March 28 and pleaded guilty to three other charges laid by RCMP. His sentencing date will take place at his court appearance on May 12.
Perley pleaded guilty to resisting arrest on Sept. 10, 2024, at Neqotkuk; flight from police on Sept. 14, 2024, at Neqotkuk; and breach of probation by failing to report from Oct. 25, 2022, to Jan. 27, 2023. He has a prior criminal record.
Remanded on new charges
Preston Sockabasin, 27, of Neqotkuk (Tobique First Nation), appeared in provincial court in custody for a bail hearing on April 9. He waived his bail until later and was remanded to jail. He returns to court in custody for plea on May 5 at 9:30 a.m.
RCMP charged Sockabasin with resisting arrest, two counts of breaching a release order, and committing mischief following an incident on April 8 at Neqotkuk. He is also awaiting trial on other charges related to an alleged kidnapping in the community in April 2024.
Guilty of assault with utility knife
Gregory Sparks, 25, of no fixed address, appeared for sentencing in provincial court on April 10 after changing his plea to guilty on three charges laid by RCMP. His sentencing date was adjourned until May 21 at 1:30 p.m.
Sparks pleaded guilty to assault with a weapon (a utility knife) involving a female victim and uttering threats concerning an incident on April 20, 2024, at Centreville. He also pleaded guilty to breach of an undertaking by violating a no-contact order. He was released on an undertaking until his sentence.
Sentencing adjourned two charges
Caleb Crain, 40, of Piercemont, appeared for sentencing in provincial court on April 9 after changing his plea to guilty on two charges laid by RCMP. His sentencing was adjourned until May 29 at 9:30 a.m., when a hearing will be held about his request to withdraw his guilty plea.
Crain was charged with assault causing bodily harm to a female victim, unlawful confinement, and uttering threats following an incident on Dec. 10, 2022, near Florenceville-Bristol. He pleaded guilty to the lesser included offence of common assault and guilty to uttering threats. The crown withdrew the confinement charge.
On March 25, Crain attempted to withdraw his guilty plea and send the matter back to trial, but Judge Natalie LeBlanc denied his request. The court heard the crown was seeking a three-month jail sentence for Crain.
Released with conditions
Christopher Thomas O’Keefe, 27, of Fredericton, formerly of Fielding, appeared in provincial court in custody on April 10 after being arrested on a warrant. He told the court he turned himself into sheriffs at the courthouse.
O’Keefe was released with conditions and returns to court on Aug. 5 at 9:30 a.m. to confirm he has legal counsel to proceed to trial.
He was charged by RCMP with sexual assault in connection with an incident on Feb. 26, 2023, at Upper Brighton. He pleaded not guilty, and his trial date was set for Dec. 18-19 at 9:30 a.m.
When he failed to return to court on April 1 for monitoring about his trial, a warrant was issued.
Bail hearing adjourned
Daniel Jr. Constandinides, 19, of no fixed address, appeared in provincial court in custody by video on April 11 for a bail hearing. He waived his bail until later and returns to court in custody for plea on May 1 at 9:30 a.m.
RCMP charged Constandinides with theft of a motor vehicle, theft of mail, and theft of a firearm on March 27 at Perth-Andover. He was also charged with two counts of assault with a weapon (a knife) and committing mischief causing property damage to a door for another incident on March 15.
He appeared in provincial court in custody by video on March 24 for a bail hearing and was released with conditions. At that time, Constandinides was charged by RCMP with breaching an undertaking and obstructing police for an incident in Perth-Andover.
Released from custody
Christopher Elliott, 35, of Wapske, appeared in provincial court in custody by video on April 10 for a bail hearing. He was released with conditions and returns to court for plea on May 6 at 9:30 a.m.
RCMP charged Elliott with breaking into a dwelling house and breach of probation concerning an incident on March 31 at Neqotkuk (Tobique First Nation). He was ordered to have no contact with the complainants.
Ankle bracelet and curfew
Austin Aubin, 28, of Neqotkuk (Tobique First Nation), appeared in provincial court in custody by video on April 10 for a bail hearing on four charges laid by RCMP. He was released with conditions, including a curfew and wearing an electronic monitoring device attached to his ankle.
Aubin was charged by RCMP with possession of a firearm while prohibited from having it, breach of probation, unsafe storage of a firearm, and possession of a firearm without a licence concerning a March 27 incident at Neqotkuk.
He will reside in Campbellton and return to court for plea on April 29 at 1:30 p.m.
Gladwyn man found guilty
Billy Joe Pelletier, 37, of Gladwyn, appeared for trial in provincial court on April 11 after pleading not guilty to impaired driving. Judge Henrik Tonning found him guilty after trial, and a sentencing date was set for July 9 at 1:30 p.m.
Pelletier was charged by RCMP with impaired driving in connection with an incident on Nov. 9, 2023, in Rowena. The crown is seeking jail time since Pelletier has previous convictions for the same offence.
Trial decision pending
Stacey Harry Broad, 57, of Centreville, appeared in provincial court in custody on April 9 for the conclusion of his trial on multiple charges. A date for the verdict was set for May 7 at 9:30 a.m.
Broad appeared in provincial court in custody by video on May 23, 2024, and was denied bail. He pleaded not guilty to assault charges laid by RCMP. The first part of his trial was held on Dec. 11, 2024, and was scheduled for further testimony on Feb. 26 but was adjourned.
Broad was charged with uttering threats, assault, assault by choking, sexual assault and unlawful confinement involving a female victim and breach of probation in connection with an incident in the County of York between April 3 and April 10, 2024. He was released from custody with conditions but was re-arrested on a charge of breaching his release order a few days later.
Found not-guilty
Harlie Dominique Scott, 26, of Fredericton, appeared in provincial court on April 10 for a verdict following her trial on charges laid by Woodstock Police. Judge Scott Brittain found her not guilty.
Scott was charged with dangerous driving and driving while suspended concerning an incident on Feb. 6, 2021, in Woodstock. She pleaded not guilty. The crown withdrew a third charge of flight from police.
Judge Brittain told the court the case hinged on the identity of the driver, which could not be proven based on the evidence from the police.
Defence Counsel Alex Carleton argued Scott sold the vehicle and was in Fredericton when the incident occurred. Scott testified during the trial.
Moved to alternative measures
Andrew Joseph Weeks, 40, of Upper Woodstock, appeared for trial in provincial court on April 11 after pleading not guilty to one charge laid by Woodstock Police. The matter was moved to the alternative measures program with the consent of the crown, and the trial was cancelled.
Weeks was charged with uttering a forged document (an Alberta operator’s licence) in his name as if it was genuine concerning an incident on Dec. 11, 2023, in Woodstock. He has until July 8 at 9:30 a.m. to complete the requirements of the program in order to have the charge withdrawn.
More monitoring
Rachel Sockabasin, 40, of Neqotkuk (Tobique First Nation), appeared in provincial court on April 8 for monitoring about her efforts with the alternative measures program. The court heard she had not yet completed the requirements, and the matter was adjourned until April 22 at 9:30 a.m.
Sockabasin was charged by RCMP with breach of an undertaking, breach of probation and three counts of theft concerning incidents on Feb. 12, Aug. 11, 2023, and Dec. 22, 2023, at the Ultramar in Carlingford.
She pleaded not guilty, and her trial was scheduled for Jan. 17. At that time, the matter was moved to the alternative measures program with the consent of the crown, and the trial was cancelled. Sockabasin must complete the program in order to have the charges withdrawn, or she will return for trial.
