Article content
The Ottawa Police Service says a 36-year-old Moncton woman has been charged with human trafficking and related charges.
Cynthia Caissie appeared in court on Wednesday to face 10 charges related to human trafficking, assault and other alleged offences.
She was remanded into custody.
In a release, police said the investigation began in March, involving one female victim. The alleged offences occurred between September 2019 and February 2024.
Article content
However, investigators believe there may be other victims of human trafficking related to this investigation.
“Considering victims may not know the legal name” of their alleged offender, and the fact that Caissie is alleged to have used the alias of ‘Bailey,’ the Ottawa police is taking the extra step of publicly releasing a photo of the accused,” the release said.
Police said they were continuing to look for more victims or people with knowledge of the case and said they “will respect victims’ wishes whether to pursue criminal charges, and regardless, can offer resources to support survivors of human trafficking.”
“The reporting of these incidents by victims to police is key for investigators to identify suspects and determine crime trends,” police said.
Police said specialized investigators from the Ontario Provincial Police were also involved in the investigation.
Anyone with information regarding incidents involving this case was asked to call the Ottawa Police Service human trafficking unit tip line at 613-236-1222 ext. 5625 or email mcm@ottawapolice.ca.
Article content
Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers toll-free at 1-800-222-8477 or crimestoppers.ca.
Caissie is charged with:
- Trafficking in persons by exercising control
- Material benefit in trafficking
- Material benefit from sexual services
- Procuring
- Uttering threats
- Assault, assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm
- Possession of a weapon
- Mischief to property
- Advertising another person’s sexual services
- Withholding travel or identity document trafficking a person over
- Uttering a forged passport
This investigation was also supported by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), police said.
Our website is your destination for up-to-the-minute news, so make sure to bookmark our homepage and sign up for our newsletters so we can keep you informed.
Recommended from Editorial
Share this article in your social network