Sydney man jailed for child abuse material charges
A Western Sydney man has been jailed for three years and three months for possessing and accessing child abuse material.
The 69-year-old Lakemba man was charged with possessing child abuse material in June 2020 following a search warrant executed at his home by AFP Child Protection Operations officers.
The investigation into his online activities began in May 2020, after the AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) received a report from the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in the United States regarding a Google user who had allegedly uploading child abuse material to Google Drive.
In February 2021, the man was further charged with possessing child pornography and accessing child abuse material using the dark web.
More than 1,000 images depicting child abuse material were located across three electronic devices seized during the investigation. Of these, more than 160 were unique files, with the majority depicting real children under 13 years of age.
The man pleaded guilty to three charges and was yesterday (Monday, 26 April 2021) sentenced to three years and three months imprisonment in the Parramatta District Court, with a non-parole period of two years.
AFP Detective Acting Inspector Jeremy Staunton said accessing child abuse material fuels the problem our officers are tackling every day.
“That photo of a child is not just a 2D image on a computer screen. It is capturing a real-life horrific experience that an innocent child has been subjected to,” Det. A/Inspector Staunton said.
The ACCCE is committed to stopping child exploitation and abuse and is at the centre of a collaborative national approach to combatting organised child abuse.
The Centre brings together specialist expertise and skills in a central hub, supporting investigations into child sexual abuse and developing prevention strategies focused on creating a safer online environment.
Members of the public who have any information about people involved in child abuse and exploitation are urged to call Crime stoppers on 1800 333 000.
You can also make a report online by alerting the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation via the Report Abuse button.
If you or someone you know are impacted by child sexual abuse and online exploitation there are support services available, visit the ACCCE to learn more.
Advice and support for parents and carers about how they can help protection children online can be found at ThinkUKnow, an AFP-led education program designed to prevent online child sexual exploitation.
Note to media:
Use of term ‘CHILD ABUSE’ MATERIAL NOT ‘CHILD PORNOGRAPHY’
The correct legal term is Child Abuse Material – the move to this wording was among amendments to Commonwealth legislation in 2019 to more accurately reflect the gravity of the crimes and the harm inflicted on victims.
Use of the phrase "child pornography" is inaccurate and benefits child sex abusers because it:
- indicates legitimacy and compliance on the part of the victim and therefore legality on the part of the abuser; and
- conjures images of children posing in 'provocative' positions, rather than suffering horrific abuse.
Every photograph or video captures an actual situation where a child has been abused.
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