Monday, November 01, 2004

Shocking Child Pornography Ring Arrests

Latest news in this case is that already 6 men in Australia have committed suicide in relation to being charged or questioned over this.

I am not going to really comment on this one - but will post a few links to news sites.

For the record, I am totally against child pornography in all forms. This whole thing disgusts me. However I do feel sad for the innocent families of the people involved. They will probably suffer for the crimes of their relatives, and that is not fair on them. It is also sad for those whose fathers and husbands have committed suicide over this rather than face their punishment like men. Maybe because they weren't men - but animals to have involved themsleves in this debauchery to start with.

Able2know
News Channel 34
The Australian
Fairfax Digital
The New Zealand Herald
ABC News Online

Four suicides follow Australian child porn swoop
Reuters
October 04, 2004, 11:55 BST
After 200 arrests and 2,000 charges being brought over child porn offences in Australia last week several of those implicated have since taken their own lives

Four Australian men have committed suicide after being caught up in an investigation into child Internet pornography that has resulted in more than 200 people being arrested and charged with 2,000 offences, police said on Saturday.

Justice Minister Chris Ellison said 700 Australians were now under investigation in the country's biggest child pornography crackdown and up to 500 people could eventually be arrested. "It's regrettable that four people, the subject of charges, have taken their own lives," Ellison told reporters. "But this investigation is an extremely important one in dealing with criminal activity which deals with the violation of innocent children," Ellison said. "This will not deter, in any way, the investigation."

The four men, one in Western Australia state, two in Victoria state and one in Queensland state, killed themselves after being interviewed by police. Two had been charged with pornography offences.

Police launched Australia's biggest child pornography crackdown on Thursday, raiding 400 premises and arresting hundreds, including police, teachers, clergy and a child-care centre owner. Those arrested in Operation Auxin face charges ranging from sexual abuse, to downloading and distributing pornographic images to child sex tourism. More arrests are expected, say police.

A 46-year-old electrician was found dead in his car at his home in Bunbury in Western Australia on Friday after he failed to appear in court earlier in the day. He had been charged with three counts of possessing child pornography. "His body was discovered by a friend who was concerned for his welfare," a Western Australia state policeman said. "From what we can ascertain so far, it appears he has died by his own hand as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning," he said.

In the southern state of Victoria, a prison guard's body was found in his car on Friday after he was interviewed by police a day earlier, said local media. Another man's body was found in Victoria after being interviewed by police. "Victoria Police can confirm that two men have died after being the subject of separate police inquiries," a spokeswoman said. "One man had been spoken to in relation to Operation Auxin. Neither man had been formally charged with any offences."

In the tropical northern state of Queensland, a former police officer facing 46 charges related to child abuse computer games, was found dead last month in the first phase of the child Internet pornography investigation, Queensland police said. "There were no suspicious circumstances," a police spokeswoman said Saturday. The officer was relieved of his duties in June when the pornography allegations first emerged. The day before he killed himself, he was ordered to appear in court to face 46 charges.

The Australian child Internet pornography crackdown stems from a US investigation in February that produced 95,000 child pornography leads worldwide, say Australian police. Police say US authorities, mainly the US Customs Service, called a meeting with Interpol in February and revealed Internet child pornography mainly from Belarus in eastern Europe.

Australian police have yet to examine 400 computers and other material seized in 400 raids in the past week. Police said some people arrested had child pornography libraries with more than 250,000 images collected over three decades and what appeared to be home studios designed to produce child pornography. Dozens of those arrested have appeared in court, including a male Sydney school teacher who faced 22 child pornography charges that include setting up a video camera behind a mirror in a school changing room to film young girls undressing.


Posted by: Jethro | 10:08 PM |