A Canadian Forces cadet instructor has been charged with sexual offences against two teenage cadets who trained in Victoria and Vernon.

Capt. Daniel Moriarity is accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a female cadet and sexually assaulting a male cadet between 2008 and 2011 at the Lt.-Gen. E.C. Ashton Armoury on Vanalman Avenue in Saanich and the Vernon Army Cadet Summer Training Centre.

Moriarity is charged with two counts of sexual exploitation, one count of sexual assault and one count of disgraceful behaviour. He is charged under the Canadian Criminal Code and the National Defence Act.

One of the alleged victims came forward with a complaint in the summer of 2011, while Moriarity was deputy commanding officer of the 3005 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps in Victoria. Moriarity was immediately suspended as an instructor pending the outcome of the investigation. He was arrested later that summer.

The investigation was conducted by the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service, which is analogous to a major crime unit of the RCMP.

Moriarity was arrested and released on conditions barring contact with cadets or attending cadet functions. The case will proceed through the military justice system.

The military police would not release Moriarity's age or hometown, but spokeswoman Capt. Karina Holder said he's "a younger officer."

Moriarity was a reservist and has been an instructor since 2006, Holder said. Instructors have to be at least 18. Holder could not say whether Moriarity was once a cadet himself.

Instructors must go through a criminal-record check and what's known as a vulnerable-sector screening check that's more detailed and includes taking fingerprints. They must also complete a suitability assessment protocol, "specifically designed to determine the applicants' ability to work with youth," Holder said.

"Those in a position of leadership in the Canadian Forces are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner at all times, and this type of alleged behaviour is treated with the utmost seriousness by the military police," Lt.-Col. Robert Delaney, commanding officer of the National Investigation Service, said in a statement.

The service is an independent military police unit that investigates serious and sensitive matters relating to Department of National Defence property, employees and military personnel serving in Canada and abroad.

"For an instructor to be charged like this, this is extremely rare," Holder said. "It's rare in part because the cadet organization is built in a multi-layered approach to prevent and then deal with these circumstances should they arise."

She said senior cadet leaders are trained in how to deal with sexual-abuse allegations, and cadets themselves undergo harassment and abuse training so they can immediately step forward if they are being victimized or see signs that another cadet is being abused.

"The victim did come forward to the chain of command and [they] reacted in textbook style by alerting the military police," Holder said.

There are 50,000 cadets in 1,000 units across Canada, ranging in age from 12 to 18.

kderosa@timescolonist.com