Nova Scotia man charged with human trafficking

A Cape Breton man who already faces more than 60 charges of sexual offenses has been hit with a new set of charges, police say.

According to an RCMP news release, investigators from the provincial human trafficking unit, RCMP and the Cape Breton Regional Police Service arrested a 45-year-old man at a Dominion residence on December 6. The investigation began in 2021 when several victims reported a man targeting women in the Cape Breton region.

Police say they have uncovered evidence that women were recorded without consent in videos posted and sold online. Seventeen survivors, reporting incidents believed to have occurred between 2008 and 2023, have come forward.

Paul Thériault Jr. was charged with 64 offenses on December 7. Due to another survivor's revelation, he also faces eight additional charges:

• possess a prohibited weapon knowing that it was prohibited
• recruiting a person to provide sexual services
• human trafficking
• obtain sexual services
• material benefit from human trafficking
• administer something harmful
• illegal detention
• sexual assault

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