70-year-old Stratford man convicted of sexual exploitation following joint investigation

December 6, 2023, Summerside, Prince Edward Island - 70- year-old Maurice Praught was sentenced to five years jail on December 5^th on four charges of sexual exploitation following a joint investigation completed by Summerside Police and RCMP.

On December 5^th, 2023 in Charlottetown Court Maurice Praught was convicted of 4 charges of sexual exploitation and was sentenced to five years prison. In May of 2022 Summerside Police began and investigation of a historical sexual assaults on a youth. It was determined that some of the offences occurred in RCMP jurisdiction. A joint investigation was conducted involving the Summerside Major Crime Unit and the RCMP Major Crime Unit.

"This was a challenging investigation involving multiple incidents and required seamless cooperation between the Summerside Police and the RCMP. Both agencies recognized the seriousness of these incidents, and were able to quickly and professionally combine their resources. We hope that this conviction can bring some comfort to the victim involved." - Superintendent Kevin Lewis, Acting Commanding Officer of the PEI RCMP.