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	Sexual Predator Abused Boys As Young As 9 CBC News June 8, 2001 http://www.cbc.ca/story/news/national/2001/06/08/cornwall010608.html CORNWALL, ONT. - After a decade-long investigation, and 100 charges against 15 men, allegations of a pedophile ring in Cornwall, Ont., produced their first conviction on Thursday. Jean-Luc Leblanc, 56, pleaded guilty to 12 attacks on 10 boys. The Crown applied immediately to have him declared a dangerous offender. Allegations of a pedophile ring operating in the eastern Ontario city have circulated for years. A special police task force called Project Truth was set up several years ago to look into stories of sexual predators – some of them highly placed members of the community – operating in the area. The investigation has led to 100 charges against 15 people, some relating to events dating back to the 1960s. But Thursday's conviction was the first. Some charges have been thrown out of court, and some of the accused have died. The court was told Leblanc had performed oral sex repeatedly on boys as young as nine years old. He was described as a sexual manipulator who would offer gifts in return for sexual favours. Leblanc pleaded guilty to 12 charges, and 29 others were withdrawn. He pleaded guilty in March to other charges not related to Project Truth. A hearing in December will deal with the dangerous offender application. A member of the Ontario legislature, Conservative Gary Guzzo, frustrated with the apparent lack of progress in the investigation, last month threatened to reveal the names of people being investigated. He says police have a list of 68 suspects, but few charges have been laid.
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