An operation led by Te Tari Taiwhenua Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has led to 7 men being charged, 12,115 pieces of child sexual abuse material being located and 1 child victim being rescued.

New details about Operation AB, a network of seven NZ paedophiles uncovered by DIA can now be revealed. Two suspects were referred to NZ Police by DIA. Three suspects are since deceased.

Operation AB was launched in October 2020 by DIA’s Digital Child Exploitation Team (DCET) following an alert from US-based National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) about an offender distributing images of child sexual exploitation and abuse via an online messaging platform. This led to DCET and New Zealand Police apprehending the 7 men on 41 charges including indecent acts on a child and the creation, possession and distribution of objectionable material.

One member of the network, a 55-year-old, was imprisoned for over four years after pleading guilty to one count of indecent act on a child. Another was found with over 900 still and video images of objectionable material featuring adult men sexually abusing children including very young babies.

The offenders were found to be an online network of peers committed to sharing child abuse material. Many of the children featured in the images and videos were just infants who were exposed to obvious and intentional pain and suffering.

“These individuals in Operation AB were part of a network of NZ-based offenders with a clear sexual interest in the sadistic sexual abuse of babies and children. The material shared amongst these individuals was horrendous and it was imperative that we brought them to justice before they are able to do even more damage..” says Tim Houston, Manager Digital Child Exploitation Team.

Houston also noted the importance of collaboration in an operation like this.

"The dedicated investigators and forensic specialists from the Department, NZ Police, NZ Customs Service and Oranga Tamariki have spent four years working to identify, investigate and prosecute the offenders at the heart of this network.

Detective Senior Sergeant Kepal Richards, Online Child Exploitation Across New Zealand Manager, NZ Police, says “Working collaboratively with our partner agencies is critical to preventing crime and harm in our community. Operation AB is a great example of our collective efforts resulting in offenders being held to account for their actions and children being safe guarded from further harm. ”

The four-year long operation has produced the following results:

• 53-year-old offender from Invercargill granted permanent name suppression and sentenced to 4 years 3 months imprisonment.
• 55-year-old nurse from Invercargill granted permanent name suppression and sentenced to 4 years imprisonment.
• 57-year-old man from Wellington granted permanent name suppression and sentenced to 8 months home detention.
• Brendan Goodley, sentenced 1 year 2 months imprisonment.

About Department of Internal Affairs’ Digital Child Exploitation Team (DCET)
DIA’s DCET is committed to keeping New Zealanders safe from online harm by responding to and preventing the spread of child sexual exploitation material online.

In 2023, DCET undertook 47 investigations into child exploitation, resulting in the discovery of almost 3 million pieces of illegal material possessed by New Zealanders. This is in addition to the over one million attempts to access websites hosting child sexual abuse material that were blocked by the Digital Child Exploitation Filtering System.

Help and support
We encourage parents and caregivers to talk to their tamariki about their online activities. Advice and support for parents and caregivers about how they can keep their children safe online can be found at KeepItRealOnline.govt.nz.

If you are concerned about something you have seen or want to report a crime, please report it to the Digital Child Exploitation Team at DIA. If you know abuse is happening right now or a child is at risk, call police immediately on 111.

If you are the victim of a child abuse or sexual abuse crime, you can contact:

• https://www.kidshealth.org.nz/child-abuse-directory-information-and-support
• Safe to Talk: 0800 044 334 Text 4334

If you are concerned about your own or someone else’s sexual behaviour, please reach out for support:

• Safe Network: 09 377 9898
• WellStop: 04 566 4745
• STOP: 03 353 0257
• Stand Strong, Walk Tall

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