Several weapons seized from man charged with sexual exploitation: New Westminster police

Weapons seized during a sexual exploitation investigation are seen in this image handed out by the New Westminster Police Department.

A man has been charged with sexual exploitation and several weapons were seized from his home after a call by a concerned citizen two months ago, according to the New Westminster Police Department.

Police say a passerby witnessed a man “acting in an inappropriate manner with a female youth in a public place” on March 21, obtained the licence plate of his vehicle, and reported the incident.

Officers found the man, but the teenager was no longer with him.

“Officers established that this male has conditions not to be in the presence of anyone under the age of 16, and although the female he had been seen with was a youth, he was not in breach of his conditions,” the department wrote in a news release Friday.

The NWPD’s Street Crime Unit then began an investigation into the man’s interactions with the girl, leading to his eventual arrest for sexual exploitation.

Under the Criminal Code, the offence of sexual exploitation means the accused touched the young person for a sexual purpose while in a position of trust or authority towards the victim, a relationship of dependency, or an exploitative relationship.

At the time of his arrest, police say, the man had a bear banger in his cross-body bag.

Believing he may possess other weapons, police obtained a search warrant for his home and seized an SKS rifle, a pistol-gripped compact shotgun and a 22-calibre semi-automatic rifle, along with replica firearms, ammunition, 3D-printed firearm parts and other illegal items.

“The presence of weapons in relation to a sexual exploitation investigation is extremely concerning,” Sgt. Andrew Leaver said, in the release. “We are thankful to the concerned citizen who called us and allowed us to uncover not only a multitude of weapons, but to also remove a vulnerable female from a dangerous situation.”

On Tuesday, New Westminster resident Jorge Esteban Reyes Alfaro, born in 1992, was formally charged with sexual exploitation and a number of weapons-related offences. They include unauthorized possession of a prohibited weapon, possession for a dangerous purpose, carrying a concealed weapon, weapons trafficking, unauthorized possession of a firearm, and contravention of storage regulations.

Reyes Alfaro remains in custody.

Online court records indicate he also faces charges of sexual interference and telecommunication to lure a child under 16, stemming from incidents that occurred in Powell River in late 2024.