According to the RCMP, 47 Canadians were arrested and 12 children were excluded from abusive situations as part of a global investigation into online child sexual exploitation.
Mounted police said that 186 charges had been filed in Canada so far during the investigation, called Operation H. They said arrests had been made in eight states over the last two years.
According to the RCMP, the survey began in New Zealand in the fall of 2019. Law enforcement officers were “warned by an electronic service provider who found a large number of subscribers sharing some of the most graphic and violent child sexual abuse material online.”
About 90,000 accounts were identified as possessing or sharing child sexual abuse material, they said.
“Online child sexual exploitation is cross-border and one of the most vicious crimes targeting our most vulnerable children …. Operation H is a global collaboration in all countries. It’s a prime example of how it can help protect children, “says RCMP Supt. Andre Boileau of the National Center for Child Exploitation Crime said in a news release.
In a statement, New Zealand officials said the child abuse material was “some of the most vicious investigators ever exposed. Many of the children featured in the images and videos are clear and intentional. The baby was exposed to a lot of pain and suffering. “
Dozens of suspects were arrested in New Zealand and 146 children around the world were protected in an international investigation, they and Europol of the Europol said Wednesday.
According to Europol, more than 800 proceedings have been filed internationally and more than 100 suspects have been identified throughout the EU.
Toronto police, who were contacted as part of the investigation, said they had arrested and charged six men for a total of 18 crimes, including those related to possession, access and distribution of child sexual abuse materials.
Toronto Police Insp. Justin Vander Hayden, a sex crime unit, said one of the defendants was subsequently convicted and imprisoned, one died and the other four were still through the judicial system.
The suspect is between the ages of 31 and 41.
To Paola Lorigillo
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