More than 150 individuals have been arrested or are under investigation following a cross-country child exploitation probe that also led to the rescue of five children from sexual abuse.

RCMP announced Thursday that more than a million images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children have been seized as part of Operation Snapshot III.

The Canada-wide operation involved more than 40 police agencies and led to 343 criminal charges being laid.

Police said the charges range from sexual assault, luring, and the possession and distribution of child pornography.

“Internet-facilitated child exploitation is one of the most horrific types of crimes a police officer has to investigate,” Sgt. Mike Petrilli said during a news conference Thursday.

“These images are not simply children having a bubble bath. They are clearly children that are in a situation where they are being sexual assaulted.”

He said some of the images depict infants and toddlers.

Police said two of the children rescued are from British Columbia and the other three are from Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick.

Police said a search warrant executed at a Moncton residence on May 8 resulted in five charges against a 33-year-old Moncton man and the rescue of a 10-year-old child who is a relative of the man.

Police allege the child was abused by the man, who cannot be identified due to a court-imposed publication ban. He has pleaded guilty to all charges against him. Police said the investigation is ongoing and more charges could be laid.

Officials described the distribution of child pornography as a “borderless crime” that requires police agencies from different provinces to work together to determine where the offences took place.

“There is no pattern to this in our country,” Petrilli said. “It’s in our large cities, in our rural area, in every province.”

The following Maritimers are facing charges in connection with the investigation:

  • Robert William Aiden Harris, 46, of Halifax is facing charges of possession of child pornography, accessing child pornography and making available child pornography.
  • Leonard Gerard MacNeil, 56, of Halifax is charged with possession of child pornography and making available child pornography.
  • Brighton Spencer, 33, of Dartmouth is charged with possession of child pornography, accessing child pornography and making available child pornography.
  • A search warrant was executed on Stoneybrook Court in Halifax on May 22. The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been laid at this time.
  • John Albert Marknette, 36, of Sackville, N.S. is facing charges of possession of child pornography and making available child pornography.
  • Jeffrey MacFadgen, 23, of Sydney River is facing charges of possession of child pornography and making available child pornography.
  • A 36-year-old Sydney man is facing charges of possession of child pornography and making available child pornography. He has not been identified.
  • Mark Edward Graham, 27, of Port Morien is facing charges of possession of child pornography and making available child pornography.
  • Taylor Jacob Robertson, 20, of Brooklyn, Hants County is facing charges of child pornography and making available child pornography.
  • A 21-year-old Hilden man is facing charges of possession of child pornography and making available child pornography. He has not been named.
  • A 50-year-old Bridgewater man is facing charges of possession of child pornography and making available child pornography. He has not been named.
  • Paul LeBlanc, 28, of Bouctouche is charged with accessing child pornography and making child pornography available. He is due in Moncton provincial court on June 25.
  • Mario Lucero, 35, of Saint John is charged with possession of child pornography and making child pornography available. He is due in court on July 28.
  • A 35-year-old Saint-Quentin man is due in court on July 10 after police seized computer equipment from a Saint-Quentin home on April 8.
  • A search warrant executed at a home in Lakeville, near Moncton, on April 23 led to the seizure of several computers and hard drives. The investigation is ongoing.
  • Search warrants were executed at a home in Moncton and a home in Riverview on June 4. A 34-year-old man was arrested and is due in court at a later date.

P.E.I. RCMP say eight active files are underway and a further four outstanding charges will be laid.

Operation Snapshot III follows two previous operations: Operation Snapshot in 2012 targeted individuals in the Prairie and Northern regions of Canada, and Operation Snapshot II in 2013 focused on individuals in Atlantic Canada.

With files from CTVNews.ca