B.C. rave rape suspect arrested

RCMP in Maple Ridge, B.C., say an 18-year-old man has been arrested and could soon face a charge of sexual assault linked to the gang rape of a drugged 16-year-old girl.

Police said the man was arrested and released, but they are hopeful Crown prosecutors will soon approve a sexual assault charge. The man is the second arrest in the investigation launched after photographs and video recordings of the incident from the night of Sept. 10 were posted on the internet.

Police said the pictures were taken at a Pitt Meadows rave party, east of Vancouver, by a 16-year-old boy who posted them on Facebook. The youth was arrested and released, but police say he could still face charges for distributing child pornography.

"Our investigators are being extremely thorough in this investigation." Insp. Derren Lench said in a statement released Friday morning.

"We have interviewed a number of people who were at the party, but there are still many police need to speak with, and we still want these people to come forward. We have made this second arrest, but there is still much followup we must do before that charge will proceed."

On Friday morning RCMP officers were also visiting four Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows high schools in an effort to stop the online posting of the graphic photographs and video.

Mounties say photos of the sexual assault by about half a dozen young men are being repeatedly uploaded to the internet — as quickly as officers wipe them off various sites. Investigators say not only do the pictures constitute child pornography, they repeatedly re-victimize the 16-year-old who survived the brutal attack.