Ontario man charged with child luring offences by Mississauga-Brampton area police

Mississauga and Brampton police have charged an Ontario man with child luring offences and say he posed as an underage male and exploited victims.

Peel Regional Police say the investigation started in December, when officers began looking into an individual who allegedly used multiple social media platforms to lure youth under the age of 16.

Investigators say the adult man pretended to be a youth online to obtain explicit images, which were then used to extort victims for sexual purposes.

Peel police say Sugin Mohanathas, of Markham, has been arrested and charged with luring a child under 18, luring a child under 16, making sexually explicit material available to person under 16, extortion, and possession of child sexual abuse and exploitation material.

Investigators say the accused used the alias Keshawn during his online chats with the victims, and also used the handles nicovalentino23 on Snapchat and Forgiveme1236 on Instagram.

Police believe there may be additional victims and are encouraging anyone who believes they may be a victim to come forward.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Peel police by calling 905-453-2121 ext. 3490.