Child Porno Ring Busted

Triple M
November 14, 2013

http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/breaking-news/blog/2013/11/federal-police-have-arrested-65-australians-following-global-investigation-child-pornography-website/

A child pornography bust in Toronto two years ago has led to the arrest of 341 people and rescue of 386 sexually abused children around the world, police say, including 65 Australians.

Toronto Police Service Chief William Blair told a media conference on Thursday (local time) that undercover officers made contact in October 2010 with a Toronto man suspected of sharing child pornography.

Their investigation led to a company believed to be producing and distributing "child exploitation videos and images over the internet," said a police statement.

The 42-year-old's home and business were raided seven months later and he was charged with operating a website that sold and distributed child pornography.

Police said the man "paid various people to film children for the purpose of creating movies for sale on his website."

Over 45 terabytes of data were seized. And police subsequently tracked down the website's customers.

As well as Australia, the United States Postal Inspection Service was involved in the probe, as were authorities in Sweden, Spain, South Africa, Hong Kong, among others.

Breakdown of Offenders by state: NSW 9, VIC 5, QLD 33, WA 5, ACT 1 and SA 12.

Meanwhile, 386 children have been removed from harm worldwide, including six in Australia.

The three-year investigation was announced last night by Canadian authorities who have referred the details of numerous Australian-based users of the child exploitation website to policing jurisdictions in Australia.

Under what is known as Operation Thunderer, the Australian Federal Police and state and territory police have arrested 65 people who have been charged with 399 offences.

Commander of the NSW Police Sex Crimes Squad, Detective Superintendent John Kerlatec, said the Sex Crimes Squad would continue to work closely with its counterparts both here in Australia and overseas to target those people involved in the sexual exploitation of children.

“The internet has created new opportunities for sex offenders to target and sexually exploit children and we will continue to prioritise the identification of these people so they can be put before the courts,” Det Supt Kerlatec said.

“Behind every child abuse image there is a real victim who has been sexually exploited and abused, and we need to do everything we can to remove these children from harm and arrest those involved in that exploitation.”

Operation Thunderer investigations are ongoing.