A Calgary man has been posting pictures of another family's daughter online for several years in an effort to mislead his connections into thinking he was a struggling single father.
CBC News reports that Brian Keith Strachan had been stealing pictures of a couple's daughter from their social media, posting them as if they were his own and claiming that he had been raising her since her birth eight years ago.
"I'm just in shock and sickened that this guy has this stuff… I was just in disbelief," the girl's father, whose name in the piece has been changed for the family's protection, told CBC News.
"It's sickening, gut wrenching," the girl's mother said. "I just didn't really know what to do. It was like we didn't ever want our daughter to leave our side."
Strachan changed the girl's name to Amanda and posted pictures of her across multiple social media networks including Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
All the accounts have been either made private or deleted.
CBC News also uncovered that Strachan had tried to use the girl's pictures to help teach his online friends how to make money.
"If I can teach my 8 year old daughter Amanda to make money I CAN AND WILL TEACH YOU," Strachan wrote on one of his posts.
Strachan had fabricated a story about how he became the guardian of the girl as well. He explained that he started looking after her because of a "14 year old girl who made a mistake in life."
The family contacted police who charged Strachan with fraud under $5,000, unsafe storage of a firearm and unauthorized possession of a firearm. They confiscated his computer and phone which may lead to further charges upon investigation.
Strachan hasn't responded to CBC's report and is set to appear in court on Aug. 9, 2023.
