At least eight other potential suspects are named in search warrants filed for sexual exploitation

Tony Humby and Bruce Escott, two men accused of being central figures in a sexual exploitation case in St John’s, were not believed to have acted alone.

According to police search warrant documents – which have not been tested in court and obtained by CBC News – there were at least eight other potential suspects who were not charged during the course of the investigation.

Three of the suspects are dead. Two people were previously accused of sexual assault but were not charged. One of them had already been convicted of sexual assault three times. Another had a court order to stay away from an underage boy.

All were named by people who came forward to the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and gave statements about Humby and/or Escott. These two men – longtime neighbors on the same street on the east end of St. John’s – face a total of 86 charges related to abuse allegations dating back to 1995 and as recently as 2022.

Humby has pleaded not guilty and will go on trial next March. Escott has reached a plea agreement with the Crown and is due back in court next month.

The unindicted suspects listed in the RNC search warrant documents cannot be named because a judge has ordered a publication ban on their identities.

“Creepy” men hang around Humby’s trailer

The 355-page affidavit obtained by CBC Investigates was written by Royal Newfoundland Constabulary Const. Jennifer Cotter, reporting on the police case against Humby and Escott.

According to Cotter’s affidavit, several alleged victims spoke about parties at Escott and/or Humby’s trailer that included teenagers and other men. Drugs and alcohol are common, they said.

“[Name redacted] said that many of the men who hung around Tony’s place were creepy,” according to a summary of an alleged victim’s statement.

“[He] also knows people outside of Tony and Bruce, other predators.

This alleged victim specifically named two men – aside from Humby and Escott – whom he suspected of engaging in illicit sexual acts in Humby’s home.

“[He] They pointed out that they are the type of people who are sexually exploitative and added that they are scumbags. He stated that he believed both had sexually exploited people, although not necessarily minors.”

According to Cotter’s affidavit, these two men were from rural parts of the province and were said to have traveled several times a year to attend the parties.

One complainant alleged that Humby and one of the men rented rooms in hotels and invited teenagers to stay overnight. He claimed the man was there when Humby abused him and accused the man of sexually exploiting his friend.

Suspect 1 – one of these two men – gave a cautionary statement to police in early 2024, saying he had stayed at Humby’s house while he was in St. John’s for medical appointments. He denied exploiting and abusing teenagers.

There appears to be nothing in the affidavit to suggest that Suspect 2 – the man described by an alleged victim as “a predatory buddy of Tony’s” and who was accused of renting hotel rooms with Humby “for men.” … to bring for sex” – was questioned by the police.

Another man, Suspect 3, was mentioned by at least four people during the police investigation, according to the affidavit. Three people said they were sexually abused by him, while another said they believed he had sex with underage children. Suspect 3 died more than a decade ago.

Three others are known to police, documents say

Two other names come from a person who gave a statement to police about their memories of Humby and Escott from around 2008.

Both potential suspects lived in the St. John’s area and were said to have attended and hosted parties with teenagers in attendance. That person told police they didn’t see anything sexual.

VIEW | What CBC has learned from unsealed court documents about a sexual exploitation investigation:

Sexual abuse allegations detailed in unsealed court documents

CBC News went to court and asked a judge to unseal hundreds of pages of search warrant documents detailing decades-old sexual abuse allegations against two St. John’s men.

However, Cotter’s affidavit shows that police compiled details about these two men and found that they were already in their databases in connection with other crimes.

Suspect 4 was involved in three sexual assaults involving adult men, while Suspect 5 was convicted of sexual assault three times.

According to Cotter’s affidavit, Suspect 4 is now dead, while Suspect 5 was still living in the city area last year.

Another individual, Suspect 6, was named by several complainants and home workers as someone believed to be associated with Humby and teenagers.

According to Cotter’s affidavit, Suspect 6 was accused of child sexual assault by a 10-year-old girl in 2003, but “the file was closed due to credibility concerns and no basis for charges.”

Seven years later, he was accused of sexual assault by a 16-year-old boy. Suspect 6 issued a cautionary statement to the RNC denying the allegations. The file was closed “because there was not enough evidence to file a criminal complaint.”

The same 16-year-old boy later became one of the plaintiffs against Humby and Escott.

There is no indication in the police search warrant documents that the previous allegations against Suspect 6 had anything to do with either of these two men.

Suspect 6 died in 2023.

According to the affidavit, two additional names appeared at various points during the investigation.

Suspect 7 was accused by social workers of “pimping” one of Humby and Escott’s alleged victims in downtown St. John’s in 2020. According to the documents, he also had a court order to stay away from the boy, who was under the age of consent.

Home workers from the group told police they had information that Suspect 8 was responsible for bringing underage boys to Humby’s trailer on Hussey Drive. According to the documents, an employee said he was “involved in the sexual activity at Tony’s home.”

None of these eight men have been charged with any offenses related to allegations in the ITO.

Legal proceedings are ongoing

RNC Const. Amanda Harnum filed an affidavit in provincial court in response to CBC’s request to unseal Humby-Escott’s search warrant document.

Harnum noted that “as part of the investigation, information about other possible suspects or co-conspirators was disclosed. This information could not be confirmed or refuted by investigators, or there were insufficient grounds in relation to these individuals to file criminal charges.”

Humby faces 72 charges and Escott faces 14.

Humby has pleaded not guilty to 33 of them and will stand trial next March. He is due in court Thursday on 39 additional charges filed by the RNC last month, the same day CBC Investigates reported on the search warrant documents. No plea has been filed regarding the more recent allegations at this time.

Escott has reached a plea agreement with the Crown and is due back in court on November 22nd.

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