Global Pedophile Ring Busted

British Authorities Say More Than 700 Suspects Targeted, 31 Children Rescued

(CBS/AP)  Police smashed a global Internet pedophile ring, rescuing 31 children and rounding up more than 700 suspects worldwide, British authorities said Monday.

Some 200 suspects are based in the United Kingdom, the Child Exploitation and Online Protection center (CEOP) said. The ring was traced to an Internet chat room called "Kids the Light of Our Lives" that featured images of children being subjected to horrific sexual abuse - including streaming live videos of the abuse.

The British officials who announced the bust said 31 children, some of them as young as a few months, had been rescued from sexual exploitation by the operation. More than 15 of the children were in Britain.

"Today's verdict serves as a powerful warning to those using the Internet to facilitate the sexual exploitation of children," Jim Gamble, the agency's chief executive told a news conference.

Authorities said they used surveillance tactics normally used against terrorism suspects and drug traffickers to infiltrate the pedophile ring at its highest level.

The investigation involves agencies from 35 countries and lasted 10 months. Officials did not immediately provide a full breakdown of which countries were involved, but identified Canada, Australia and the United States as British officers' main partners in the investigation.

The host of the Web site, Timothy David Martyn Cox, 27, of Buxhall, England, who used the online identity "Son of God," admitted to nine counts of possessing and distributing indecent images, authorities said. Cox was given an indeterminate jail sentence Monday at Ipswich Crown Court, in eastern England.

The trail leading to Cox started in Canada with the arrest of 24 pedophiles, reports CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer. Police followed links from there to another ring in Tennessee and eventually to the apparent global ringmaster in Britain.

After his arrest in September, authorities were able to infiltrate the chat room and collect evidence on the other members.

The bust was announced by CEOP, but the crackdown was carried out under the auspices of an international law-enforcement cooperative known as the Virtual Global Taskforce, or VGT.

According to the VGT Web site, it is made up of Britain's CEOP (which also chairs the organization), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Interpol, the Australian High Tech Crime Center, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Other countries' law enforcement agencies frequently work with the core members listed above.

The group's mission, according to the Web site, is to deliver "low-cost, high-impact initiatives that prevent and deter pedophiles from exploiting children online."

Toronto police said they had arrested 10 people since March 2006.

Details of involvement in the crackdown by U.S. agencies were yet to be made public. CEOP told CBS News that any role played by U.S. authorities would have to be confirmed by the Department of Homeland Security.

Officers posed as contributors and even pretended to be Cox during the investigation, running the chat room for 10 days. At no point did officers distribute illegal images.

Forensic teams examining Cox's computer found 75,960 indecent and explicit images in addition to evidence that he had supplied 11,491 images to other site users.

A man described as Cox's lieutenant, Gordon Mackintosh, tried to resurrect the chat room in January. Authorities in Britain, Canada, Australia and the U.S. again infiltrated the operation. Upon his arrest, they assumed Mackintosh's identify online and ran the chat room for three days while collecting information on offenders who traded images in the chat room.

Mackintosh, 33, pleaded guilty to 27 charges of making, possessing and distributing indecent images and videos. He is awaiting sentencing.

In February, authorities in Austria announced an even larger child pornography bust; claiming 2,360 suspects from 77 countries who paid to view videos depicting young children being sexually abused.

The FBI was investigating about 600 suspects in the United States as part of its joint role in the Austria bust.

[devotedoz]

This is fantastic news needs to be alot more of it.These disgusting predators are around every corner and drugs seems to be there main link other than evil minds.We have been trying to get authorities to act in a case of a 5 year old girl being abused by her father and many of his mates for 7 months now and keep hitting brick walls.Seems to be here in Australia the pedophile has more rights than the victims, but we will keep on pushing.
BRING BACK CAPITAL PUNISHMENT, THEY DONT DESERVE A SECOND CHANCE!!!!!!!

[hermit22]

rharrin1,i get so tired of reading dumb, thoughtless remarks.

perverts come in ALL colors,and backgrounds and many sides of the political winding fence. some don't have 2 cents in their pocket and others tool around in limozines in manhattan and beverly hills and maybe pallaces.some travel to asia specifically to act out as perverts and others just grab the next handy homeless kid under the bridge. these perverts might not have much in common at all except they have all fallen for EVIL perversion! the question is WHO may have pushed them into the 'fall' when these future perverts were children themselves? and if it weren't sold on the web would others never have been tempted and fallen?

[rharrin1]

Gee this will probably remove at least half of the republicans in congress.

[hermit22]

how can someone become such a serious pervert so young?

when a "fence" or whatever it is is guilty for making money off of stolen property why isn't the internet provider guilty in the courts for aiding and abbetting and for making money off these insidious perverts?

[hermit22]

tuckerndfw, you owe Singinrick a serious appology.

[hawksprings]

"Names and addresses, all of them! Out the perverts!
C'mon CBS, if Novak can out a CIA spook, you can surely out some true criminals, we want names and addresses!"
Posted by brianbwb

GREAT Idea Brian! I love it.

[klingon69]

These sickos have existed since the dawn of time - we're finally doing something about them - but have no illusions that this is new, the modern world, the internet - this has always happened. Used to be it was just private business, a father the king of his castle, or the child's fault. That's all that has changed, that now we consider it a crime and prosecute it.
Posted by SusanHelit at 02:15 PM : Jun 18, 2007
Unfortunately Susan, although it is great that they have caught these things, this kind of behavior occurs 24/7 in many 3rd world countries.
In Thailand, phillipines, cambodia, laos, columbia...and many others, brothels run constantly that cater to pedophiles. Thousands if not millions of little children put at the mercy of these creatures.

[klingon69]

That is good, but why should it include "repeat"?
A person who is a repeat offender has been given the chance to ruin the life of another child.
People that sick and demented don't change. Why give them another chance?
Posted by last121868 at 10:24 AM : Jun 18, 2007
Because you have things like the young man who had consensual oral s.e.x with the 15 year old girl (he was 17), and wound up in prison. Similar events have occurred in many states in which although both were under 18, the boy was arrested and charged with child molestation for being with his girlfriend.
Now, that aside, I think true child molesters/pedophiles need to be exterminated.

I hate to tell you Cryonbrian, pedophiles arent only white men, they are all races if you watched the news youd know that.

[lastdance2]

Even : "J. Edgar Hoover" (FBI Director)
Often enjoyed : A romp in bed with : "Young Boys"

Video tapped - Statements : From former FBI agents :
Describing how - They delivered young boys - For S*e*x*
Is evidence to that ! ! ! !

"Solicitation - Prostitution - Pimps"
The FBI - (Uncovered) - In one of it's more finest moments

Research :
The Secret Life of J Edgar Hoover
copy and paste (Google)

Lastdance

[prinzowhales]

Still only one name, one picture as the poster boy for this evil enterprise. I would hope that the authorities, in their 10-month investigation, would have come up with some of the producers of this filth--not just the purveyors and customers. Its almost like the CIA's importation of drugs in the midst of the 'drug war'--a protected enterprise where usually its only the customer who goes to jail...only in this case, its a well-earned outcome...unlike the 'drug war' victims who join the ranks of the slaves in prison sweat shops.

[choney2]

To sexually abuse a baby what type to attaction can that be to a grown man. These people act as if these children have been put on this earth to serve their preverse needs. They don't care one way or another what they are during to these children's lives. They don't care whether they have a life or a future or any dreams of their own. My greatest fear is what they do with these babys after they become to old for their sexual taste. Their is nothing on the law books anywhere in this world that fits the punishment that they deserve for their sick crimes. They should be put to death for the souls of these young children that they have killed. And not treated with any respect under the law but publically exposed and their families and churchs and jobs made completely aware of their activitys. They will go to jail for a few years and come out and return too the same sick and preverse trade.Or we could build a shack in the woods and put in it a vise. Next to the vise put a sharp knife and then insert their private parts into the vise and lock it. And then set the shack on fire and leave it up to them whether they cut off their organ or die in the fire.

[shanev137]

I wonder if any of the suspected pedophiles were female teachers or catholic priests.

[brianbwb-2009]

Names and addresses, all of them! Out the perverts!
C'mon CBS, if Novak can out a CIA spook, you can surely out some true criminals, we want names and addresses!

[sparkelbutt-2009]

One person said to imprison them for life.....Oh hell No. Why give them the life of riley. They will have 3 meals a day, clothes on their back and recreation. Put them in front of a firing squad and let them see the bullets coming..Genitals go first so they feel the pain and then right thru the heart. Saves every taxpayer money.

[michellem99-2009]

The pain lives with the child for years. It messes him/her up for life. I know. I FEEL THEY SHOULD FIX THEM FOR LIFE SO THEY CAN'T HURT A HELPLESS PERSON. It happens in foster homes and had for years.It was never talked about years ago as they said the child made it up,or they are scared they will lose the foster parents' license. I was abused as a foster child in the 60s and 70s.I never lied. No child lies about this. This went on way before the net.The computer should not be used to share that trash to hurt children and helpless adults who are disabled. The foster parents in the homes I stayed are dead but I don't live in the state where it happened and there is no records as the abusters kelp it quiet plus I was too scared to talk back then.

[cryonbrian]

The white man is tha nastiest animal on the face of the earth! Nasty Buzzards!

[heyitsme_76]

These disgusting creatures should have their genitals removed as punishment (that includes Catholic priests who sexually abuse minors). That's the ONLY way to prevent such scumbags from being repeat offenders.. Period. [If anyone disagrees which this method of punishment, they can go to hell..]

[toddpw01]

Finally, people we SHOULD be sending to Guantanamo.

[nyckate]

Imprison them for life without possibility of parole -- there is no cure for these animals - the recidivism rate is 99.99999% - they should never again be free in society - they will do it again - and again - and again.