A BCMP officer testified Monday at the trial of Dutchman accused of sexually extorting Amanda Todd that the Port Coquitlam teenager wanted the harassing messages to stop. Const. Robin Sedgman told BC Supreme Court in New Westminster that she met with Todd and her parents on several occasions in 2011 because of the messages the teenager was receiving through her social media accounts. “He wanted out. He wanted to stop.” Todd took her own life in 2012 at the age of 15 after being exploited online for a period of three years. Dutch national Aydin Coban, 44, pleaded not guilty to five criminal charges related to Todd’s case, including extortion, possession of child pornography and child seduction. He is not charged in Todd’s death. Aydin Coban is shown in photos from the time of his arrest in an exhibit at his BC Supreme Court trial. The 44-year-old has pleaded not guilty to blackmail, possession of child pornography and child enticement in connection with the cyberbullying of Amanda Todd. (BC Supreme Court) Sedgman said she first met with Todd and her parents, Carol and Norman, at a BC police station to discuss the messages the teenager was receiving, including where the video and photo attachments were coming from. The RCMP officer also shared tips on how Todd could stay safe online. He said the teenager seemed “bothered” about talking to police and “didn’t seem overly concerned with what was going on”.
Police visits to parental home
On January 3, 2011, Sedgman and RCMP Const. Andrea Schadeck – who also testified at trial – went to Norman Todd’s residence in Maple Ridge to meet with him and Amanda. Sedgman testified that while officers were there, Amanda signed into her Facebook account to show them the messages she was receiving from a profile named Tyler Boo and printed them out. Amanda Todd’s mother, Carol, is pictured outside the Courts in New Westminster, BC, on June 6, 2022. (Ben Nelms/CBC) She said that again, Todd was not receptive to suggestions that she delete her social media accounts or at least limit her Facebook friend list to people she knew personally. According to Sedgman, the teenager said she did not feel threatened by the messages at the time. The two female officers, who both worked as investigators in the sex crimes unit, went to Norman Todd’s home a second time on October 26, 2011. This time, Schadeck went up to Amanda’s room to speak with her privately. “She looked more sad than anything,” Schadeck testified Monday. The officer told the court she spoke to Todd about how social media can be used to track a user’s location. She said the long conversation gave her the impression the teenager was very lonely.
The video links were sent to the police
In early November 2011, Sedgman said she received information from an officer in Maple Ridge that an email had been sent to members of the school Amanda Todd attended at the time. The email contained four hyperlinks to videos and photos of the 15-year-old baring her breasts. Sedgman testified that in one of the videos, Todd appeared to have a conversation with someone about whether or not she should expose herself before lifting her shirt and showing her breasts to the camera for about 10 seconds. The survey was handed over to Schadeck in November. Schadeck testified that she called the Todd family that month to tell them the BC RCMP’s child exploitation unit was unable to trace the IP addresses the messages and emails came from. She again spoke to Amanda about her online and physical safety and advised her to delete her social media accounts. Schadeck said the teenager was still unhappy with that suggestion, but, by the end of the phone call, she had agreed to delete her Facebook profile the next time she accessed the internet. The trial is expected to last another three weeks. Support is available for anyone who has been sexually assaulted. You can access crisis lines and local support services through this Government of Canada website or the Ending Violence Association of Canada database. If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety or the safety of others around you, call 911. If you or someone you know is struggling, here’s where you can get help: This guide from the Addiction and Mental Health Center describes how to talk about suicide with someone you are worried about.
