NEWMARKET - A teacher was hired at Newmarket High School this year while facing child pornography charges laid in 2022 when he worked as a substitute teacher in Nanaimo, B.C.
Darrell Christopher Gilkes, 31, was charged by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police with possession and distributing/importing child pornography on Dec. 4, 2022, according to British Columbia Court Services Records. The B.C Prosecution Service agreed to pursue the charges and issued a warrant for his arrest on May 13, 2024.
Gilkes is confirmed to have been teaching at Newmarket High School for the 2023 to 2024 calendar year.
"The staff member is not at the school pending the outcome of the investigation," Christina Choo-Hum, manager of corporate communications for York Region District School Board, told NewmarketToday.
Allegations against Gilkes stem from a police raid at his house, where investigators seized several devices. The B.C. Ministry of Education and Child Care states that Gilkes agreed to an undertaking not to practise teaching in B.C. while the investigation was ongoing.
Gilkes, however, holds teaching licences in B.C. and Ontario. A judge in Nanaimo granted him permission last July to move to Newmarket to live with his parents.
"While at this time there is no reason to believe the charges involve any student at the school, we know the charges are concerning for students and their families and the school community," said Choo-Hum. "Right now, our focus is on establishing support for students and staff, including support through our social work and psychology teams. We continue to co-operate with and support the police investigation."
York Regional Police said it would not confirm if it is acting on the arrest warrant.
When asked by NewmarketToday how Gilkes was hired as a teacher in Newmarket despite the child pornography charges on his record, the Ontario College of Teachers stated it will not comment on any investigations or confirm whether an investigation may be ongoing.
However, it did state that applicants are required to provide criminal record checks when they submit their membership application. Gilkes applied to teach in Ontario almost a decade ago and received his licence on July 29, 2016.
"Mr. Gilkes' certification was completed in 2016, long before the criminal charges," said Gabrielle Barkany, bilingual senior communications officer for the college.
He still held a licence to teach in Ontario despite the investigation by police in B.C., and before the B.C. Prosecution Service approved the charges and issued the arrest warrant this month.
"As part of an investigation involving a member who is the subject of a criminal investigation, the college will seek and obtain information from the relevant police service," said Barkany. "The member remains a member of the college until either they resign their membership or there is a college proceeding that results in the revocation of their certificate of qualification and registration."
The college suggested contacting the school board as employers of Ontario Certified Teachers to learn about employment-related checks.
The school board said successful candidates and volunteers are required to provide a satisfactory police record check.
"Following this initial record check, all staff members are required to attest annually that they don't have any convictions under the Criminal Code of Canada," said Choo-Hum. "Staff are also required to notify the board within 48 hours of any occasion where they are the subject of a criminal or Children's Aid Societies investigation, or if criminal charges have been laid against them."
After the prosecution office approved the charges, the school board removed him from the classroom.
"Immediate action was taken to remove them from the classroom pending an investigation," said Choo-Hum. "Should we receive information from any police services, we would share this information with families."
