SALT LAKE COUNTY, Utah, July 14, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A former West Valley City police officer has been charged with eight third-degree felonies for allegedly having unlawful sexual activity with a minor.
According to a probable cause statement filed in Salt Lake County’s 3rd District Court, Edward Michael Cann, 29, also faces a class B misdemeanor charge for allegedly providing unlawful shelter to a runaway.
On June 29, Tooele City police responded to the report of a missing teenager, the statement said. A 14-year-old girl had left her home during the day and had not returned.
Tooele City PD listed the girl as a juvenile runaway and shared her information on the National Crime Information Center website. The family of the juvenile made several social media posts requesting help locating her, the probable cause statement said.
The teen had last been seen at the Ross Dress For Less store at Valley Fair Mall in West Valley City.
“Detectives were able to obtain information that she had made phone contact with a male identified as Edward Cann. Security video showed her get into a black Ford Escape that belonged to Edward Cann.”
On July 3, West Valley and Tooele City detectives made contact with Cann and verified the juvenile was not at his residence in West Valley City, according to the probable cause statement. During a conversation with Cann at his residence, he allegedly admitted he had picked up the juvenile from the Ross store and taken her back to his residence. Cann also allegedly told police the juvenile left the next day and he had not seen her since.
On July 4, the teenager was located at a friend’s home in Eagle Mountain, police said. She was transported to a local medical facility for a crisis evaluation and treatment. When she was interviewed, she disclosed she was at Cann’s residence for four days. During this time, she said she had “consensual sexual intercourse with Cann two to three times a day,” the affidavit said.
The teen allegedly told investigators when Cann learned the police were looking for him, he told her to leave. She said she went to Salt Lake City to be with another friend and ultimately got a ride to Eagle Mountain where she was located by police.
“Cann is a former law enforcement officer and military veteran who recently was in the hospital for PTSD,” the probable cause statement said.
The West Valley City Police Department confirmed Cann’s employment in a statement provided to Gephardt Daily.
“Edward Cann was employed by the West Valley City Police Department beginning June 5, 2017,” the WVCPD statement said. “His most recent assignment was as a detective assigned to the prosecutor’s office. Cann resigned from the department Nov. 2, 2020.”
The statement did not reveal why Cann resigned.
Cann was transported to Salt Lake County Jail, where he is being held without bail.
