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Summerland mayor says lifeguard’s arrest ‘deeply upsetting to our community’

Former lifeguard Ed Casavant facing 10 counts of child sexual assault and pornography charges
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Summerland’s municipal council and staff are in shock after a former lifeguard and aquatic centre supervisor was arrested and charged with child sexual assault and pornography charges.

On Wednesday, Ed Casavant, 54, of Penticton was charged with 10 counts relating to incidents from 2008 to 2014.

Casavant, also known as Eddie Spaghetti, worked at the aquatic centre for more than 30 years, before retiring in late 2018.

READ ALSO: Former South Okanagan lifeguard charged with child sex offences

“We recognize this situation is deeply upsetting to our community – to any community,” said Mayor Toni Boot. “It’s upsetting to us as well. We know people will have questions, and we will do our best to answer them when it is appropriate and when we have the authorities’ permission to do so.”

The 10 charges against Casavant are are two counts of making or publishing child pornography, one count of importing or distributing child pornography, one count of possession of child pornography, one count of accessing child pornography, one count of secretly observe/record nudity in private place, one count of sexual exploitation of a person with a disability, one count of sexual assault, one count of sexual interference of person under 16 and one count of invitation to sexual touching under 16.

Boot added that the municipality is now focussing on ensuring that those affected will be able to get the help they need, and to take measures an incident of this nature cannot happen again.

“We want all Summerland residents and visitors to know that public safety, and particularly the safety and well-being of our children, matters most,” Boot said.

“We will do everything in our power to provide municipal facilities where people can feel comfortable, safe and free from harm or discrimination.”

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John Arendt

About the Author: John Arendt

John Arendt has worked as a journalist for more than 30 years. He has a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Journalism degree from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute.
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