Belconnen man charged with possessing child abuse material
A 19-year-old Belconnen man will face court today (Saturday, 7 May 2022) after being arrested and charged with possessing child abuse material.
In February this year, members of the ACT Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team (JACET) received information from the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) regarding the alleged upload of child abuse material to a file sharing platform.
After an investigation by officers from the ACT JACET with support from the Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Team, police executed a search warrant at a home in Belconnen yesterday (Friday 6 May 2022).
A personal computer, two laptops, a tablet, two mobile phones and two USB storage devices were seized, suspected to contain child abuse material.
The 19-year-old man was subsequently arrested and charged with two counts of possessing child abuse material. He is scheduled to appear in the ACT Magistrates Court today.
Anyone with information regarding the accessing or creation of child abuse material is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website. Information can be provided anonymously.
Note to media: USE OF TERM ‘CHILD ABUSE MATERIAL’, NOT ‘CHILD PORNOGRAPHY’
Use of the phrase “child pornography” benefits child sex abusers because it:
- Indicates legitimacy and compliance on the part of the victim and therefore legality on the part of the abuser; and
- Conjures images of children posing in ‘provocative’ positions, rather than suffering horrific abuse.
Each photograph captures an actual situation where a child has been abused. This is not ‘pornography”.
Media enquiries
Police Media — (02) 5126 9070, act-police-media@afp.gov.au