A British Columbia man has been sentenced to more than 17 months in prison after police found several collections with thousands of child sexual abuse images in a multi-year investigation in which he was arrested at least four times.
Richmond RCMP say Robert Grant Wilson initially pleaded guilty to one count of possession of such materials on Aug. 5, 2025, before admitting the additional count on Feb. 25.
RCMP say in a news release that Wilson is facing two consecutive sentences totalling 535 days in prison, and must register on the National Sex Offender Registry and obey a 15-year ban on contact with children upon release.
Wilson was first arrested in June 2021 after patrons at a Richmond café saw him accessing child abuse material on an electronic device, and after the Special Victims Unit took over the investigation, he was rearrested in 2024 and "a collection of thousands" of images was found on a phone and computer.
Further charges were recommended and after Wilson's rearrest on an outstanding warrant — in which a new cellphone was located — he pleaded guilty to the initial charge last year.
He released on bail but arrested again after police discovered another collection of thousands of images and videos on the new cellphone, triggering the second charge.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson