A case in northern Alberta has raised alarm after a man was charged, released, and charged again in a string of sexual assault allegations. According to CBC News, Joseph Kidd, a 32-year-old from Grande Prairie, is facing multiple sexual assault charges after RCMP say he used social media to target young women and girls. RCMP describe four alleged victims aged 12 to 18 across British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan, and say they believe there may be others, while the repeated releases between charges have drawn attention to how he remained free as new allegations surfaced.
The first case came to light in the spring. Police say a 14-year-old girl came to the Grande Prairie RCMP detachment in April, alleging that Kidd had picked her up in British Columbia and driven her back to his home in Grande Prairie. According to the girl, she was kept there for a week and got out only when Kidd left for work.
That report led to the first set of charges against him. Police charged Kidd with several offences, including sexual assault, in connection with the allegations from the teenager. He was then released on conditions while the case moved forward, leaving him free in the community.
Within weeks, RCMP were called back to his home. In early May, officers responded to a 911 call at the residence, where an 18-year-old woman alleged that Kidd had sexually assaulted her after she refused to engage in sexual acts. He was arrested and charged once again with sexual assault over that incident.
The pattern then repeated a third time. Released again in early June with a promise to appear in court, Kidd was the subject of a fresh allegation only weeks later, when a 15-year-old said he had sexually assaulted her after offering her a ride. Police say there were multiple incidents involving the two and laid several more charges, again including sexual assault.
Investigators have stressed that the case is built on allegations that still have to be tested. The accusations against Kidd have not been proven in court, and he is entitled to a defence as the matters proceed. For RCMP, the through-line of the cases is the use of social media to reach young women and girls, a method that connected a man in Grande Prairie to alleged victims well beyond his own community.