By Cullen McCue – Trending Political News
The former leader of a prominent Canadian LGBT Pride organization has been arrested and charged with committing multiple sex crimes against children.
Sean Gravells, 39, was arrested and charged with multiple offenses on December 29. He previously served as the board president of the North Peace Pride Society (NPPS) in British Columbia, according to a report from CBC.
Charges filed against Gravells include touching a person under 16 for sexual purposes, sexual interference of a person under 16, possession of child pornography, and importing or distributing child pornography, British Columbia Prosecution Service (BCPS) spokesman Dan McLaughlin told the outlet.
McLaughlin noted that the offenses in or around Fort St. John, located just north of Vancouver. The interference and exploitation charges were filed for alleged offenses that occurred on December 29, 2023, while the child pornography charges occurred on December 31.
Gravells served as the board president at NPPS since 2018, though the group has confirmed that he was recently removed from the role. While not naming him directly, the group put out a Facebook statement in which they acknowledged that a member had been charged with “severe” crimes that are inconsistent with their values. “In response to the gravity of the charges, we have immediately removed this person from our board, emphasizing our commitment to our community’s values,” reads the statement.
“We want to clarify that the society itself is not implicated in any charges; these are isolated to the individual.”
The Post Millennial’s Andy Ngo shared the statement on X and noted that it did not reference the severity of the allegations or acknowledge that Gravells is the group’s leader. “The LGBTQ+ organization Sean Gravells ran released a statement not identifying it was their president who was arrested nor the nature of his alleged child sex crimes,” Ngo wrote. “The group works closely with children through their youth programs.”
McLaughlin told CBC that Gravells had his first court appearance on January 1, while his arraignment hearing is currently scheduled for January 29.