News Centre

A Tasmanian man is expected to appear in Launceston Magistrates Court today (29 August, 2024) charged with possessing child abuse material.

The Tasmanian Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team (TAS JACET), comprising members from the AFP and Tasmania Police, arrested and charged the man today.

The investigation began when the AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) received a report from the United States’ National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) about an online user uploading child abuse material.

AFP investigators allegedly linked the man, 48, to the illegal online activity.

A search warrant was executed at his South Launceston home today (29 August, 2024), with investigators allegedly finding child abuse material on electronic devices. The devices will be subject to further forensic examination.

AFP Detective Sergeant Aaron Hardcastle said the AFP, together with its state and territory law enforcement partners, remained committed to protecting our community's most vulnerable.

“Offences against children are particularly heinous due to the exploitation involved, and we will continue to target this type of offending Australia-wide,” Det-Sgt Hardcastle said.

“Our message to online offenders has not changed - if you procure, access, or transmit child abuse material, you will be found, arrested and prosecuted.”

The man was charged with one count of possessing child abuse material accessed or obtained using a carriage service, contrary to section 474.22A of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth). The maximum penalty for the offences is 15 years' imprisonment.  

The AFP and its partners are committed to stopping child exploitation and abuse and the ACCCE is driving a collaborative national approach to combatting child abuse.

The ACCCE brings together specialist expertise and skills in a central hub, supporting investigations into online child sexual exploitation and developing prevention strategies focused on creating a safer online environment.

Members of the public who have information about people involved in child abuse are urged to contact the ACCCE. If you know abuse is happening right now or a child is at risk, call police immediately on 000.

If you or someone you know is impacted by child sexual abuse and online exploitation, support services are available.

Research conducted by the ACCCE in 2020 revealed only about half of parents talked to their children about online safety. Advice and support for parents and carers about how they can help protect children online can be found at the ThinkUKnow website, an AFP-led education program designed to prevent online child sexual exploitation.

For more information on the role of the ACCCE, what is online child sexual exploitation and how to report it visit the ACCCE website.

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.