Criminal charges involving child pornography have been laid against a local man who worked as a teacher on call in 10 Whitehorse-area schools.

Education Minister Jeanie McLean made the announcement Thursday afternoon.

Andrew Stuart Cook, 37, has been charged with one count of allegedly possessing child pornography between Aug. 24, 2018 and Oct. 10, 2023.

According to court documents, the images were of females under the age of 18 years old.

Cook was also charged with the alleged possession of a loaded firearm without a licence.

He has not yet appeared in court. His first appearance is set for Feb. 28.

There are several conditions Cook has agreed to comply with to avoid a bail hearing as he awaits his court appearance.

These include his agreement not to access the internet, possess a computer capable of connecting to the Internet, possess or use a camera or video-recorder, attend any place where persons under the age of 18 could reasonably be expected to be, or have any unsupervised contact with persons under the age of 18 years old.

“This teacher on call has not been working in schools since October 24, 2023, immediately after the department became aware of the allegations,” McLean said in a statement.

On Tuesday, the Department of Justice confirmed that a search warrant had been executed and that the RCMP had charged the individual with possession of child pornography.

The RCMP advised the Star late Thursday afternoon, “Investigations involving child pornography are complex in nature, and typically require lengthy forensic examination of electronic devices followed by additional investigative actions.

“This investigation is in the early stages, and it would be inappropriate for anyone to make comment at this time; to do so may have a prejudicial impact on the investigation.”

School councils and administrators at schools where the person worked were informed on Wednesday and Thursday.

Ted Hupé, the president of the Yukon Association of Education Professionals, told the Star, “The minister did not send us her news release. I had to get that from the opposition.

“Other than the news release, I do not have any information.”

McLean noted that “teachers on call are required to submit a clear vulnerable sector criminal record check every two years, and this individual did so over the five years that they worked in Whitehorse-area schools.”

During this time, the accused worked as a teacher on call at F.H. Collins Secondary (2019 to Oct. 24, 2023), the Individual Learning Centre (2018 to 2019 and 2020 to 2021 school years), Golden Horn Elementary (2018 to 2021 school years), Christ the King Elementary (2019 to 2020 school year), Porter Creek Secondary (2019 to 2021 school years), École Émilie Tremblay (2020 to 2021 school year), Jack Hulland Elementary (2020 to 2021 school year), St. Francis of Assisi Secondary (2020 to 2021 school year), École Whitehorse Elementary (2020 to 2022 school years) and Holy Family Elementary (2021 to 2022 school year).

“The Department of Education is reaching out to school communities, including parents, administrators and school councils, at schools where this individual worked to inform them of this issue and ensure that they are aware of available supports,” McLean said.

“I recognize that this information is concerning and may trigger an emotional response from students, parents and other members of our school communities. There are supports available for anyone who needs them.

“Our top priority will always be the safety and well-being of Yukon students,” the minister added.

Students, parents and school staff can contact the Department of Education’s school community consultant at 456-6587 for help navigating referrals and obtaining access to counselling services.

As well, the Child, Youth and Family Treatment Team offers counselling services, outreach services and youth intensive treatment to help school-aged children, and can be reached at 456-3838.

Family and Children’s Services can connect families with services, counselling and community resources, and can be reached at 667-3002.

Victim Services personnel provide help for victims, including crisis support.

They can be reached in Whitehorse at 667-8500 or toll-free at 1-800-661-0408, extension 8500.

“While we have achieved great progress to ensure student safety in places of learning through the work of the Safer Schools Action Plan,” McLean said, “the Yukon government remains committed to working to improve our processes and policies and working with partners to ensure student safety.

“We will continue to communicate information on this matter in an open and transparent manner, and we will continue to focus our efforts on improving how we implement and operationalize the Safer Schools Action Plan to ensure that our schools remain safe, welcoming, supportive environments for everyone in our school communities.”