Former RCMP officer pleads guilty to child sexual abuse material charges, receives 41-month sentence

Evan Peacock, 35, a former Alberta RCMP officer, pleaded guilty Thursday at Edmonton Court of King's Bench to two charges: transmitting and possessing child sexual abuse material. He was sentenced to 41 months, with enhanced credit for time already served leaving approximately two weeks remaining.

Peacock joined the St. Paul RCMP detachment in 2020 and remained a member until his arrest in April 2024. The charges stemmed from reports to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children about child sexual abuse material uploaded from an IP address in St. Paul. The reports were forwarded to the Northern Alberta Integrated Child Exploitation unit, which launched an investigation.

Police obtained a search warrant and seized electronic devices from Peacock's home. A forensic examination of his phone found 401 files of child sexual abuse material, primarily stored in a hidden, password-protected folder. Some videos involved very young children and depicted sexual acts including abuse involving animals. Peacock admitted possessing the material and using encrypted messaging applications to distribute some of it to other users, effectively using distributed material as currency to obtain additional material.

After his arrest, Peacock provided police with device passwords and told investigators where material could be found. Two victim impact statements were read in court—one from the mother of a child whose images were found on Peacock's device, describing feeling "hopeless and helpless." The child victim described being in a constant state of hypervigilance and fearing the images would follow her into adulthood.

Child sexual abuse and exploitation material offences carry serious criminal penalties depending on the offence and how it is prosecuted.