N.S. attorney general wants answers after innocent man serves 18 months in prison

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia’s attorney general says he wants answers on how an innocent man served 18 months in prison for child exploitation charges after investigators mixed up his online username.

“When we have a situation like this with a wrongful conviction, I think that can shake that trust people have in the system,” Attorney General Scott Armstrong told reporters after a cabinet meeting Thursday. “We’re going to take steps that are necessary to make sure we restore that trust and have a system that people can count on in the province.”

A court of appeal decision last month said Brandon Klayme was convicted on several charges in 2023 after a complaint from the family of a 12-year-old girl in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin police linked Klayme to the case through online messages sent to the girl via the social media app Kik. The court decision said Klayme’s username was almost identical to the the one used to contact the victim, except Klayme’s had one less underscore.

Believing it was the suspect’s, police traced Klayme’s username to his email account, which led them to his internet protocol address in Halifax. The investigation was turned over to Halifax Regional Police.

The decision said police searched Klayme’s home in February 2021, seizing devices such as phones and laptops from his bedroom. It said there was no evidence linking Klayme to the complainant and that his Kik account saw no activity during the time of the offences.

“Although the information about the usernames was available at the time of the trial, there is no evidence confirming or explaining how it went unnoticed,” said the decision.

In January 2024 Klayme was sentenced to 18 months in prison, which he served, plus 18 months probation. The charges were for making sexually explicit material available to a child, child luring and possession of child exploitation material.

Klayme said in an affidavit that the username mistake that “changed the course of my life” was found while preparing his appeal.

The appeal court said the case rested on the username evidence and acquitted the Nova Scotia man on all charges. It said if investigators had used the correct username they likely would have identified somebody in California.

Armstrong said he feels terrible for Klayme and his family. He said his department will make sure similar incidents can never happen again.

“I’m not sure how something like this can happen within the system,” Armstrong said. “I’ve asked the Public Prosecution (Service) to give me a specific briefing on all the steps in this case. And once I have that, I want to make some decisions of what (the) next steps will be.”

Asked if he will consider a public inquiry, Armstrong said he’s not ruling anything out. He said he’s more than willing to meet with the acquitted man or his representatives. He said there have not yet been any talks about potential compensation.

Klayme’s lawyer did not immediately return a request for comment Thursday.

NDP Leader Claudia Chender told reporters the case is a shocking miscarriage of justice.

“What we need to hear from the minister and this government is how the government will make amends for this,” she said. “You know, the fact that they have not yet engaged with the Public Prosecution Service, it’s been a couple of weeks now. I think we really need to see expedited action on this file.”

Liberal House Leader Derek Mombourquette said he thinks there are grounds for a public inquiry.

“I think that the department really needs to take a look at the resources that are put in place to support the Public Prosecution (Service) as technology evolves,” he said.

“We need to be doing whatever we can to make sure that we’re providing all the information using all the technology to make sure this never happens again, because it’s devastating.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 6, 2026.

Devin Stevens, The Canadian Press