20 individuals residing in Sweden are suspected of sexually exploiting Filipino children, the police announce.
The perpetrators have been identified in an international operation, and among the seized material, there are assaults on children as young as three years old.
The assaults consist of buyers instructing adults via the internet to perform sexual acts on the children, assaults that according to the police were broadcast live for payment via webcams.
Many of the children in the seized material were around ten years old, the youngest being three years old. The assaults took place over a twelve-year period, according to the police.
Collected material is being analyzed
In total, nearly 200 suspects have been identified during the international operation, led by Europol and the US Department of Homeland Security, together with police from nine different countries.
During the five-day operation, 32 police officers processed and analyzed tens of thousands of chats, images, and filmed assaults on children. Elin Nelly, an analyst at the Noa national IT crime center, participated in the operation and believes that it is not as effective to work alone and only focus on one's own country.
Instead, you pool your resources for a short time. Then you usually get results, but this is extremely good results, she says to TT.
Making a difference for the children
The charges for those residing in Sweden are child rape or sexual assault of a child. Due to the secrecy of the preliminary investigation, Elin Nelly cannot elaborate on the cases. However, she says that the police have additional intelligence information that can lead to further investigations.
The operation will make a difference for the exploited children, whom Elin Nelly claims are treated "as a commodity". The police, in collaboration with the Filipino police, can identify and apprehend them.
This also enables us to get information about individuals who may have access to children in their daily lives, where they may be at risk of being subjected to assaults, she says.
