Finn suspected of sexually abusing 445 Thai boys

HELSINKI - A Finnish man suspected of sexually abusing at least 445 Thai boys over the last 15 years has been detained, Finnish police said, calling the case the country's biggest ever of its kind.

The man, born in 1962, was caught in January after returning from his 26th trip to Thailand since 1989, police said. The tip-off for the case, now being examined by a prosecutor, first came from a Belgian investigation last autumn.

"In a home search we found his diary notes, which also contained statistics on how many boys he had abused per trip. He has kept a cumulative figure and it ends at about 445," said Detective Superintendent Lars Henriksson from Finland's National Bureau of Investigation.

"(We also found) extensive child pornography material which he had made for his own use," Henriksson said, adding that police had detained the man before he could make diary notes or update his statistics from the 26th trip.

Detective Chief Inspector Mika Ihaksinen, who headed the investigation, said there was pornographic video material of the suspect with Thai boys for the past six years. All of the boys involved were between 10 and 13 years old.

Ihaksinen said the case was Finland's biggest ever. He said the man had already confessed and could face a 10-year jail sentence.

Hannele Selin-Hakala, prosecutor in the case, said she had not yet decided what charges would be brought against the man, who will likely appear in court in the southern Finnish town of Kouvola at the end of May or the beginning of June.

"This is not a unique case in global terms, but the extent of it is nevertheless very unusual. Generally people get caught earlier on," Henriksson said.

- REUTERS