A man is due to appear in Perth Magistrates Court tomorrow on charges of attempting to import child abuse and objectionable material into Australia.
On Saturday 2 September 2023, Australian Border Force (ABF) officers conducted an examination of a 51-year-old man's baggage when he arrived at Perth International Airport on a flight from the United States via Singapore.
During the examination, officers found several videos of alleged child abuse material within a hidden folder on the man's mobile phone.
ABF officers subsequently seized three personal electronic devices for further investigation and the man was arrested.
It will be alleged in court that ABF investigators found 590 images and 62 videos of child abuse material and 89 images and 22 videos of objectionable material on the devices.
Text conversations and audio messages allegedly describing sexual activity between the accused and a person depicted to be under the age of 18 were also discovered.
The man from Binningup, Western Australia, was charged with import goods that are tier 2 goods, namely child abuse material, without the requisite approval, and import goods that are objectionable goods under the Customs Act.
He is due to appear at Perth Magistrates Court tomorrow (Friday, 22 March 2024).
ABF Acting Commander Vesna Gavranich said the ABF had a zero tolerance approach to child exploitation material.
"Our officers are alert to the indicators that persons may be seeking to travel with this abhorrent material both in and out of Australia," Acting Commander Gavranich said.
"We won't hesitate to use our powers to prosecute or remove from Australia any individual associated with these vile activities who may pose a threat to our community."
The maximum penalty for an individual importing or exporting child exploitation material is $525,000 and/or 10 years' imprisonment.
Objectionable material describes or depicts, in a way that is likely to cause offence to a reasonable adult, a person who is, or who appears to be, a child under 18. This includes material that is known as child abuse material.
Anyone with information about individuals coming through the border with illicit material, including child exploitation material, should report it by visiting Border Watch on the Department of Home Affairs webpage. You can remain anonymous.
