A Western Sydney man was today (13 September, 2024) sentenced to a maximum of more than four years' imprisonment for online child abuse material offences following an AFP investigation.
The man was sentenced by the Downing Centre District Court to a total of four years and two months' imprisonment, with a non-parole period of two years and three months.
Police identified the man following a report from the United States' National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding an Australian user uploading child abuse material online.
AFP officers executed a search warrant at the man's Prospect home in January, 2022, and seized a mobile phone containing child abuse material files which had been shared on a social media messaging application. The man was subsequently arrested and charged.
The man, 45, pleaded guilty in September, 2023, to the following offences:
- One count of using a carriage service to solicit and transmit child pornography material on three or more occasions and the commission of each offence involved two or more people, contrary to subsections 474.19(1) and 474.24A(1) of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth);
- One count of using a carriage service to transmit child pornography material, contrary to section 474.19 (1) of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth); and
- One count of possessing child abuse material accessed or obtained using a carriage service, contrary to section 474.22A (1) of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth);
AFP Detective Acting Inspector Emmanuel Tsardoulias said victims were retraumatised each time images or videos of their abuse was accessed and shared.
"These victims are real people and are not commodities to be used for the abhorrent gratification of predators," he said.
"If you engage in this activity, you will be found and you will face the full force of the law."
The AFP and its partners are committed to stopping child exploitation and abuse and the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (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.
