A Sydney man has been sentenced to five years' imprisonment for online child abuse charges.
The investigation into the man's activities began when the AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) received a report from the Federal Bureau of Investigation about a user allegedly uploading child abuse material online.
AFP investigators allegedly linked the man to the illegal online activity.
AFP Child Protection Operations team in Eastern Command executed a search warrant at the man's home in Cabramatta on 19 August 2021 and charged him with:
- One count of possessing/controlling child abuse material using a carriage service, contrary to section 474.22A of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth); and
- One count of using a carriage service to access child abuse material, contrary to section 474.22(1)(a)(i) of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth).
The man, 39, was sentenced at the Downing Centre District Court on 1 December 2022 to two years and four months' imprisonment for the first offence and one year and eight months imprisonment for the second.
The AFP further charged the man on 12 January 2022 with refusing to comply with a section 3LA Order, contrary to section 3LA (6) of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth), when he refused to supply the AFP with log-in details for a device suspected to contain child abuse material.
The man received the additional charge while remanded in custody for the two child abuse-related offences.
He was sentenced to one year's imprisonment for this offence on 2 March 2023.
"People who access and possess child abuse material are part of the problem. They contribute to an abhorrent market that harms children and causes lasting trauma," Detective Sergeant Pandher said.
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 at www.accce.gov.au/report. 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 at www.accce.gov.au/support.
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 www.thinkuknow.org.au, an AFP-led education program designed to prevent online child sexual exploitation.
