KANANASKIS – Police are searching for a man who has been spotted naked at a Kananaskis Country campground many times over the past month.
RCMP have confirmed the man, described as being fully nude, skinny in stature, Caucasian and possibly bearded has been seen by campers on several occasions around Mount Kidd RV Park.
“This file does mention that there have been several sightings of this individual,” said RCMP media relations officer Cpl. Troy Savinkoff.
“Every time he’s spotted by the public, he runs away.”
RCMP have recorded at least two calls on the matter, on July 16, and again on July 23.
The naked man has, so far, managed to evade police, which have been conducting foot patrols in effort to find him.
“We are continuing to work with Kananaskis Emergency Services and local authorities to locate this male, who is repeatedly being spotted naked in the area," said Savinkoff.
It is believed the man has been residing in several shelters set up in the area, some of which have been found by police.
A Reddit post describes one user’s account of seeing the man during an annual family trip to the campground.
“He was naked. Top to bottom. No shoes,” the post states.
“He saw and/or heard us and took off like a deer. Hurdling and moving through the trees like an animal that knew the trails well.”
The Reddit user said the incident was reported to campground staff, who were not surprised to hear of the naked man.
“Turns out he’s been ‘wreaking havoc in F Loop’ for a month,” the post states.
“Where does he go? Where are his clothes?”
Several commenters on the post say they have also seen the naked man.
“Camping in F loop right now and can confirm this story,” says another user. “We walked to the river from F loop and the man was completely naked and frolicking is the only way we can describe his actions. When we spotted him, he jumped behind a bush and peeked over it until we left.”
Savinkoff said there are criminal offences which could apply to the man, if police are able to track him down.
Section 174 (1) of the Canada Criminal Code states it is illegal for anyone who, “without lawful excuse,” is “nude in a public place” or “is nude and exposed to public view while on private property, whether or not the property is his own.”
There are other offences relating to nudity which could apply but have not been reported to police.
If any shelters discovered by police are found to belong to the man, he could also face criminal charges under the Provincial Parks Act, including for random camping.
Random camping is not permitted in a provincial park or provincial recreation area. It is, however, permitted within a public land use zone, as long as the site is at least one kilometre away from a public land recreation area, provincial park or provincial recreation area.
The Outlook has reached out to Alberta Parks for comment on reports made to campground staff and will update this story if more information becomes available.
The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada. The position covers Îyârhe (Stoney) Nakoda First Nation and Kananaskis Country.