51-year-old Moreton Bay man charged with multiple child abuse offences
Editor’s note: Images from this investigation are available via Hightail.
A 51-year-old man will appear in Redcliffe Magistrates Court today (13 October, 2021) after the Australian Federal Police charged him with multiple child abuse offences in August 2021.
In 2020, the AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) received a referral from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in relation to an online user allegedly transmitting child abuse material to an online storage account.
Investigators from the Brisbane Child Protection Operations Team later identified a 51-year-old Scarborough man as the alleged user of the online account.
On 5 July 2021, officers executed a search warrant at the man’s residence in Scarborough, seizing a USB storage device and desktop computer for analysis.
The man was given a notice to appear and subsequently charged with:
- one count of possession of child abuse material, contrary to section 474.22A, Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) and;
- one count of access child abuse material, contrary to section 474.22, Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth).
The maximum penalty for these offences is 15 years’ imprisonment.
AFP Detective Acting Superintendent Tim Puchala said the AFP is committed to identifying and prosecuting anyone who seeks to possess or access child abuse material.
"Anyone who views or shares this material is perpetuating the harm of a child, and helping to prop up a vile industry that will abuse more children to satisfy the demand," he said.
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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