How an Underscore in a Skyrim-Themed Username Sent an Innocent Man to Jail for 18 Months

Ever-so-slight variations in a Skyrim-themed username are what got a man from Halifax, Nova Scotia, sent to prison for 18 months to serve time for a heinous crime he did not commit. As the CBC reported, the difference between one underscore and two was enough to convict an innocent man for the crime of having…

How much could a single underscore in a username really matter? Just ask Brandon Klayme, who served 18 months in prison before realizing how authorities arrested, charged, and convicted the wrong man.

One missing underscore in a Skyrim-themed username put an innocent Nova Scotia man in prison for 18 months. A 2018 child-luring investigation, which began in Madison, Wisconsin, and eventually extended to Halifax, Canada, was based on a false premise. Police were looking for a man using the Kik messaging service under