Accused child rapist caught
American caught camping with his family
John Colebourn, The Province
Published: Sunday, September 23, 2007

RCMP in Saskatchewan have taken into custody an accused American child rapist and his family who entered Canada through a border crossing in the Kootenays.

Jeffrey Spady, his wife Kim Spady and their four young children were found in Kyle, Sask., and arrested by the RCMP.

Jeff Spady, 40, was considered armed and dangerous according to authorities in his native Washington state.

He was charged on Sept. 7 with rape of a child in the first degree, rape of a child in the second degree and rape of a child in the third degree.

The accused contacted the sheriff's office in March when she was 17, and said Spady raped and molested her from age 10 to 16.

The degrees in the charges refer to the girl's age at the time of the alleged offence.

When the investigation began, Spady's children, boys ages six, eight and 14 and a girl age 12, were placed in government care but permitted to live with their mother Kim on condition Jeff Spady have no contact with them.

The day the charges were laid Spady and his family fled their home in Amboy, Wash.

On Sept. 8, they entered Canada at the Kingsgate border crossing in the East Kootenays.

A warrant was issued in the U.S. for Spady's arrest on Sept. 13 when police realized he had vanished, and an alert was sent to Canada Border Services and the RCMP.

"I can confirm the RCMP have arrested Jeffrey Spady and family and at this point there is no further information," said Canada Border Services Agency spokeswoman Loretta Nyhus.

"It is still early in the investigation," she said.

She said they will have a detention review and by early this week the family may be sent back to the U.S.

"Typically they will be returned to the U.S. unless there are some criminal charges here in Canada," she said.

U.S. authorities say Kim Spady does not believe the allegations and supports her husband.

Authorities were worried the family had gone under cover and were planning on living through the winter in an old trailer that was taken across the border by another person.

jcolebourn@png.canwest.com

© The Vancouver Province 2007