An actor on the original “Degrassi High” has been arrested in Toronto and charged with multiple crimes after police discovered “thousands” of images and videos containing child pornography in his possession.
Jason “Byrd” Dickens, reports The Toronto Star, faces 20 charges, including sexual assault, making, accessing and possessing child pornography, and bestiality, with police alleging he distributed child porn under online aliases including Retrodeviant, Byrd_Dawg and Sir Dirk, and frequented several websites devoted to sexual fetishes.
Fans of vintage “Degrassi” will recall Dickens, now 45, from his recurring role as Scott Smith, abusive boyfriend of Kathleen Mead (Rebecca Haines), in the early 1990s.
Also arrested in the case is 31-year-old Dylan Anne McEwen of Toronto, who is facing 10 charges, including five child pornography-related charges, sexual assault and bestiality.
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“Several devices containing evidence of child pornography were seized at a home, and led to arrests of two other women who police allege interacted with Dickens,” reports the Star. “Police allege Dickens and another woman engaged in the sexual abuse of a child between 2000 and 2006, and distributed pornographic images and videos online.”
The other woman, who has not been identified but is from London, Ont., is facing 10 charges, including two sexual assault charges, two making child pornography charges, and distributing and possessing child pornography, while Tina Ewen of Thunder Bay was also arrested in the course of the police investigation.