Welland man charged in child pornography investigation

Niagara police have arrested a man from Welland for sharing child sexual abuse material online.

Officers with the department’s Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit began an investigation in August after several uploads of child sexual abuse materials were uploaded to a Google cloud-based storage device.

Detectives say they recovered several devices capable of storing electronic data from a Welland residence following a police raid Jan. 17.

The devices were turned over to the precinct’s Technological Crimes Unit.

READ MORE: St. Catharines man charged in child pornography investigation

Upon further inspection, authorities found evidence that the devices had been used to access and share images of child sexual abuse online.

On Jan. 18, police arrested 28-year-old Joshua Couto Paiva of Welland, who is now facing multiple charges for possessing and accessing child pornography.

Paiva was held in custody and will attend a bail hearing in a St. Catharines courthouse Jan. 19.

Authorities say online platforms that allow like-minded users to create, share and store child porn are a prevalent problem on the internet — but offenders who try to hide behind anonymous accounts can and will be found and held accountable for their actions.