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AREA NEWS: Edmonton man attempts to arrange sex with 11-year-old

ALERT investigators arrested a 43-year-old man for allegedly attempting to arrange sex with a minor.
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EDMONTON -

ALERT investigators have charged a 43-year-old Edmonton man with making arrangements or agreement to commit sexual offences against a child and making child pornography.

Officers with the Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) team, along with the Edmonton Police Service west division, arrested Wesley Darrell Vander Leeuw Jan. 25 in relation to the investigation.

Investigators say Vander Leeuw thought he was meeting a woman and her 11-year-old daughter for sex, but was actually talking online with an ICE investigator.

Online conversations with Vander Leeuw have been ongoing since this past December, say investigators, and during the course of the investigation the suspect allegedly engaged in sexually explicit conversations and attempted to arrange for sex with the investigator’s spurious daughter.

Vander Leeuw remains in custody and is expected to make a bail application on Jan. 27. He is also involved in coaching youth soccer in Edmonton, say officers.

Currently ICE has no information to suggest he offended on any children but are encouraging anyone with information about this case to come forward and contact police.

Anyone with information about this investigation, or any child exploitation offence is encouraged to contact local police or cybertip.ca.