A young man who has just been sentenced for having child pornography at home yesterday turned out to have been part of a worldwide ring of paedophiles uncovered through a complex international investigation.
The man, 21, had been found in the possession of pornography featuring children under the age of nine following information sent to the Malta police by the European Police Office (Europol), which was working with the Austrian Criminal Intelligence Service to uncover a vast ring of paedophiles. Investigations, which were officially announced yesterday after they came to an end, identified more than 200 paedophiles around Europe, more than half of whom have been arrested. Most come from different professional backgrounds and some were found to have worked in schools.
The Maltese national, who cannot be named by court order, was eventually sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for three years. He was also placed under a supervision order for the same period of time. Five children, whose age ranges between four and 12, were found to have fallen victim to the ring and used to produce pornography.
The arrests were made in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and the UK.
The ring was first discovered by the Austrian Criminal Intelligence Service, which stumbled upon an internet service provider that was being used by paedophiles to distribute child pornography over the web. The service eventually collected a wealth of logs and material, which it then sent to Europol. The office, in turn, provided intelligence and sent reports to its member countries after organising and analysing the content.
"Child sexual abuse is one of the most horrific crimes, so I am extremely pleased that Europol, together with our partners, have been successful in having these offenders identified and arrested," said Rob Wainwright, Europol's director. "But most of all, I am glad to see that vulnerable children have been identified and saved from further harm."
Europol has so far supported 23 similar international investigations, which have led to the identification of about 1,600 offenders and the rescue of many children.