An innocent man from Dartmouth, N.S., spent 18 months in prison because of a police typo
The court said Klayme was factually innocent after investigators traced the wrong Kik username, a mistake that led to his 18-month prison term.
- On July 23, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal acquitted Brandon Klayme of all charges, declaring him 'factually innocent' after an investigative error led to his wrongful conviction for child sex abuse.
- Investigators in Wisconsin launched the case in 2018, attempting to track a Kik account named 'fus__ro_dah.' Authorities mistakenly subpoenaed 'fus_ro_dah,' a nearly identical username that belonged to Klayme, a resident of Halifax, Canada.
- Police arrested Klayme in 2020 and seized his devices, yet investigators found no evidence linking him to the crimes. He was convicted in 2023 and served the full 18-month prison sentence before the error surfaced.
- Defence lawyer Zeb Brown discovered the discrepancy while preparing for the appeal this spring. The panel concluded Klayme 'should never have been charged, let alone convicted,' and vacated all ancillary orders against him.
- Court documents indicate the actual suspect resides in California, according to authorities. The case illustrates how minor clerical errors carry life-altering consequences, though it remains unclear if Klayme will seek compensation for his 18 months in prison.
8 Articles
8 Articles
How One Missing Underscore Sent an Innocent Man to Jail for 18 Months
Brandon Klayme spent 18 months in jail before an appeal court found he had been wrongly convicted after investigators traced the wrong online username. The Halifax man was acquitted after it emerged that a missing underscore in a Skyrim-inspired username had led police to the wrong person, overturning convictions that should never have been brought against him. The case began with a 2018 investigation in Wisconsin and resulted in Klayme's arrest…
A missing underscore in a username sent an innocent man to prison for 18 months
A Halifax man was recently cleared of all charges after spending a year and a half behind bars because an investigative error led to his conviction for possessing child sexual abuse material. The mix-up occurred because the police missed a single underscore while investigating a suspect's username.Read Entire Article
Brandon Klayme lost 18 months of his life because of a single username typo in a police investigation
When police began searching for an online account tied to a criminal investigation, they believed they had found the person they were looking for. The account belonged to Brandon Klayme, a Canadian man who was later convicted on child sex abuse charges despite investigators having traced the wrong username. According to Android Authority, the mistake came down to a single missing character in a police subpoena. Authorities were searching for the…
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