Edmonton Man Charged With Sexual Assault of Children May Have 100 Victims

The Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams (ALERT) now believe that Imesh Ratnayake, 21, may have more than 100 victims, children whom he lured through the internet to meet with him and perform sexual acts.

In July, the Edmonton man was charged with sexual assault involving six children. ALERT announced Dec. 20 the expanded number of alleged victims discovered through investigations.

Ratnayake had been released on conditions after his July arrest. He was again arrested Dec. 9.

Sgt. Kerry Shima of ALERT’s Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit said in a release: “The investigation into Mr. Ratnayake has been evolving since his first arrest last summer. ICE Forensic Technicians, our Criminal Analyst and investigators have discovered thousands of videos and images that depict upwards of potentially 100 additional, unidentified victims of child luring and sexual assault.”

Shima urged parents in the Edmonton Region to talk with their children to see if they communicated or met with Ratnayake.

His alleged offenses are against children in the Morinville area, in the fall of 2021.

Investigators say he may be known to his victims through Snapchat profiles with user names “islandsauce0129,” “monked.ruffy,” or “mattwintoni.” They believe he often used the pseudonym Matt Wintoni.

Anyone with information about Ratnayake is asked to call local police, the Edmonton Police Service, or Crime Stoppers.

​​Tara MacIsaac is an Epoch Times reporter based in Toronto.