The murder of two FBI agents in the United States during a child sexual abuse investigation has led to charges against 19 men and 13 children being removed from harm in Australia.
Australian Federal Police (APF) has revealed details of the joint FBI operation targeting child abuse material on the dark web.
The investigation dates back to February 2021 when FBI agents Daniel Alfin and Laura Schwartzenberger were gunned down as they served a search warrant on a paedophile computer programmer who was distributing child sexual abuse material in Florida.
The programmer, David Lee Huber, was thought to have watched the agents through a doorbell camera before shooting them through the unopened door and then killing himself.
Three other agents were injured in the shooting.
A spokesperson for the AFP said the investigation, known as Operation Bakis, had its origin in those murders.
The FBI passed on details of the Australian members within the peer-to-peer network allegedly sharing child abuse material on the dark web.
"Two Australian offenders have been sentenced with others remaining before the courts," the AFP said in a statement.
Most of the Australian offenders were employed in occupations that required a "high degree" of knowledge about information and communications technology.
"Members used software to anonymously share files, chat on message boards and access websites within the network,'' the statement said.
"Network members were able to search for and distribute images and videos of child abuse material and allegedly used encryption and other methods to avoid law enforcement detection."
The alleged offenders were aged between 32 and 81.
--Men arrested, children rescued in three states
The spokesperson said it would be alleged some Australian children had been directly abused and others relocated as a precautionary measure.
Children were removed from harm in the ACT, New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia.
This includes five children in the ACT, where two of the men are facing 54 charges.
"A public servant living in the ACT was sentenced in June 2023 to 14 years and six months jail after pleading guilty to 24 charges in the ACT Supreme Court,'' the statement said.
In NSW two children were removed from harm and five alleged offenders are facing 13 charges.
"A call centre operator on the NSW central coast was sentenced to five years imprisonment after pleading guilty to possessing an estimated five terabytes of child abuse material,'' according to the AFP statement.
Four children were removed in Queensland and five offenders are facing 45 charges.
In South Australia, two children were relocated and five alleged offenders are facing 16 charges.
One alleged offender is facing five charges in Tasmania as is one in Western Australia, the statement said.
--'No country can fight these threats alone'
FBI legal attaché Nitiana Mann said the FBI and the AFP's close working relationship was key to investigating the crimes.
"The complexity and anonymity of these platforms means that no agency or country can fight these threats alone,'' she said.
AFP Commander Helen Schneider said the success of the operation was also down to the dedicated personnel "who never give up working to identify children who are being sexually assaulted or living with someone who is sharing child abuse material".
"Criminals using encryption and the dark web are a challenge for law enforcement, but Operation Bakis shows that when we work together we can bring alleged offenders before the courts,'' Commander Schneider said.
Senior police in the ACT, Queensland, NSW, South Australia and Tasmania all praised the cooperation between the agencies.
Queensland Police Service Child Abuse and Sexual Crime Group Acting Detective Superintendent Glen Donaldson said Task Force Argos continued to relentlessly target predators who exploit technology in their heinous crimes against children.
"These arrests are a testament to the commitment of QPS and law enforcement agencies globally, to work together to put alleged perpetrators before court and rescue any children in harm's way," Acting Detective Superintendent Donaldson said.
"Everything you do online leaves a trace.
"To those predators who seek to exploit children online, remember the next person you engage with online could be a police officer."
In the days after the death of the two FBI agents, US President Joe Biden paid tribute to the agents saying: "My heart aches for their families."
Story By: Rory Callinan
Original Story link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-07/qld-afp-fbi-agents-murdered-child-sexual-abuse-investigation/102698672?fbclid=IwAR3fxQV363nNH7dCTF7swjfcd2q3U1lY3hM-9stBfUYFLgU0Ewb3uPoLivU
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