Customs investigation leads to jail time for Auckland man caught with child exploitation material

The Auckland man was sentenced to four years and ten months jail for possessing child exploitation videos and images. Photo / 123RF

A man who had been sharing “extreme” child exploitation material was detected by overseas law enforcement agencies, leading to an investigation and jail time.

The international agencies alerted New Zealand Customs Service to the Kiwi man’s illegal online activity which involved sharing child sexual exploitation images and videos on overseas-based cloud and social media platforms.

Customs raided the man’s Auckland home and forensic screening of his electronic devices confirmed his email address had been used to share the abusive videos online.

He was arrested and charged with 16 counts of possessing, importing, exporting, distributing and making objectionable materials. He also had a recording of the Christchurch Mosque Attack livestream.

Yesterday, the man appeared in the Auckland District Court where he was sentenced to four years and 10 months in prison.

Simon Peterson, chief customs officer - child exploitation operations team, said most of the images and videos they found on the man’s devices were classified in the “extreme” category.

“Sharing this type of material fuels the abuse of children across the world, so it’s critical that we identify and catch others like him,” he said in a statement following the sentencing.

“It’s a growing problem both in Aotearoa and globally. But as the offenders become more sophisticated, so do we.

“Customs is committed to working alongside local and international law enforcement agencies to combat the exploitation of children, no matter where they are in the world.”

Any publication that promotes or supports the exploitation of children for sexual purposes is deemed an objectionable publication under the Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act and can carry a maximum penalty of up to 10 years imprisonment.

Possessing and sharing video footage of the Christchurch mosque shootings is also against the law in New Zealand.

Christchurch man Philip Arps was jailed for 21 months in 2019 for sharing footage of the terror attack.