Wellington, March 2 (BUS) – New Zealand authorities said on Wednesday that a New Zealand-led global investigation into online child sexual abuse material has identified more than 90,000 accounts, and has led to the arrests of hundreds of perpetrators worldwide and the protection of 146 children.
The set of images were discovered online in late 2019 when New Zealand’s ISP sounded the alarm, sparking a two-year investigation dubbed “Operation H”.
New Zealand’s Department of Home Affairs (DIA), US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Australian Federal Police, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, UK National Crime Agency, Europol and INTERPOL have worked together to identify and investigate people linked to the accounts. .
“Many people who view material of this nature will continue to physically abuse children,” Tim Houston, director of the Digital Child Exploitation Team at DIA and chief investigator for Operation H, said in a statement.
“It is imperative that we be able to bring them to justice before they can do more harm.”
The Ministry of Interior said that about 836 cases were investigated internationally and 146 children were protected. 46 people were arrested in New Zealand and hundreds abroad, including in Britain, Canada, Spain and Slovenia.
Britain’s National Crime Agency said many of the 450 people it arrested were working in positions of trust, including in primary schools, nurseries, law enforcement, the medical industries and some religious officials.
“This is not a victimless crime, every time this material is viewed, this child is being re-victimized,” said DIA’s Houston.
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