Mounties in North Vancouver say charges have been laid against a former elementary school teacher in connection to assaults that allegedly took place more than 40 years ago.
Brian Moore has been charged with 12 sexual offences, North Vancouver RCMP announced at a news conference Thursday afternoon.
Moore is facing 10 counts of indecent assault, one count of sexual touching of a person under 14 years old and one count of sexual assault, police said.
The 83-year-old was arrested in August 2022 for sexual assaults he allegedly committed while working as an elementary school teacher.
When announcing the arrest last year, police said the suspect faced allegations of indecent assault from seven former students, and they believed there were additional victims who had not yet come forward.
On Thursday, North Vancouver RCMP Const. Mansoor Sahak told reporters the detachment's appeal led to several additional victims reaching out.
"We understand that this news may be upsetting for members of the community and, especially, for the victims," Sahak said. "We would like to thank those that came forward to provide statements. Without their courage, we would not be in the position that we are in today."
Many of the alleged assaults took place while Moore worked as a teacher at Upper Lynn Valley Elementary School from 1970 to 1982, police said last summer, adding that additional assaults had been alleged after he stopped working as a teacher in 1982.
One of the first accusers to come forward, a man whose name is now protected by a publication ban, says he’s far from satisfied.
"(It's) underwhelming," he said of Thursday's news.
"We want to see this person brought to justice, and so far he has experienced very little pain,” he added. “So far, all he’s had to do is pony up for a lawyer.”
He told CTV News he decided to finally come forward to police last year after meeting with another alleged victim.
"I brought our class photo and we immediately identified eight victims in that class photo, three of which had committed suicide to that date,” he said. “We decided at that point that – in the spirit of integrity and leadership – it was something we needed to do something about."
While skeptical it will happen, the man is hoping he gets to face Moore in court.
“We would anticipate looking forward to our day in court where we get to face our offender and tell him what impact he's had on our lives,” he said.
Sahak said the BC Prosecution Service approved the charges against Moore on Wednesday.
The charges relate to alleged offences against 11 victims, all of whom were boys under age 18 at the time the incidents occurred, according to police.
"We had a number of victims that came forward," Sahak said. "Ultimately 11 statements that were provided by the victims, those were forwarded to the BC Prosecution (Service) for consideration."
Moore's first offence is alleged to have occurred in 1976, while the most recent incident allegedly took place in 2007, police said.
Sahak said Moore is not in custody and is not currently subject to any conditions related to his release from custody last summer.
Mounties encouraged victims of sexual assault to reach out to their victim services unit, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 604-969-7540.
"We want you to know we are here, we will listen and we will support you," Sahak said.
