International child porn ring suspect bust at a Joburg varsity
JOBURG - The specialised team of investigators from the police's Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit in Gauteng have arrested a 20-year-old student at a Johannesburg university for possession of child pornography.
Police said they also seized a laptop, a cellphone, seven USBs and an external hard drive which contained 1 000 child porn images.
This latest arrest is part of the team’s Cloud 9 operation, which is investigating the South African wing of a paedophile ring which has members all over the world. A previous arrest was made by the team in Midrand. The team has made seven arrests in total.
The police said, “These rings have software that enables them to share images of child pornography with one another. He was identified through the account of another suspect who was arrested in Plettenberg Bay, Western Cape, early this year.
“Until today, only adults have been arrested in connection with this heinous crime. However, it is evident that this crime has no boundaries and we want to warn the people of South Africa to not allow themselves to be caught in this vicious web. We are gaining momentum in tracking those involved… and let this serve as a warning that it is only a matter of time before you are arrested.”
The suspect, who is a computer science student, appeared in the Johannesburg Magistrates’ Court on 17 September and was granted R5 000 bail. His case has been postponed to 4 December.
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