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CNN Live Today

International Child Pornography Ring Broken Up

Aired August 09, 2002 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: First up on CNN this hour, developing story on Internet child pornography. Any minute now, U.S. Customs officials will be releasing the results of an investigation into a global child molestation and pornography ring.
And our Jeanne Meserve has been following this story for us now. Let's check in with her. She is in Washington this morning -- hello, Jeanne.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Leon. Child pornography on the Internet is widespread, but the ring whose breakup is about to be announced by the U.S. Customs Service is particularly troubling because it involved parents molesting their own children, children who sources tell me were sometimes as young as 2 years old. Child care providers were also involved.

The Customs Service will announce that to date, 45 children worldwide have been rescued from this abuse, including 37 children right here in the U.S. This global investigation dubbed Operation Hamlet has been underway since November when Danish police were tipped off by an Internet watchdog group called Save the Children. Thus far, ten suspects have been arrested in Denmark, Belgium, Germany, England, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.

In this country, ten U.S. citizens have been arrested in California, Idaho, Nevada, Florida, New York, Washington state, New Jersey, Michigan, South Carolina, Illinois and Texas. Among those arrested, a child counselor in California, and the operator of a photography business who used his company to produce child pornography. A search warrant was also executed in Reno, Nevada, but according to an indictment, before formal charges of molestation could be served, the suspect there committed suicide.

Additional arrests are anticipated. The group made and exchanged photographs of children in their custody and care while the abuse was going on, and according to the indictment, one member requested of another an audiotape of a child crying while the child was being spanked and otherwise abused.

More details to come shortly from the U.S. Customs Service.

HARRIS: All right. Thanks, Jeanne. It's kind of hard to take, but very important work those people are doing there at the Customs Service.

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