Internal Affairs invites crime tips

The Department of Internal Affairs believes the conviction of an internet cafe owner fined for selling objectionable material will encourage more people with information of similar crimes to come forward.

Soon O Jeong was sentenced in the Auckland District Court on two charges of copying and selling a movie of women and children being sexually abused, and 14 possession charges.

Jeong was fined $5440 and his computer hard drive was forfeited and destroyed.

Department of Internal Affairs censorship compliance national manager Steve O'Brien said the conviction resulted from information provided by the Motion Picture Association (MPA), a United-States based organisation which protects copyright on movies.

In April 2003 an MPA representative bought several movies at Jeong's store and passed them on to the department.

Concerns that reporting a possible crime might breach the Privacy Act were unfounded, Mr O'Brien said.

- NZPA