For the first time, the frontline officers who spearheaded the investigation have shared its inner workings, as well as the challenges that come with sifting through millions of unimaginably horrific material and dropping bombshells of devastating news on families.
"I was absolutely shocked," AFP Acting Sergeant Scott Veltmeyer said from the AFP's Sydney headquarters, recalling the moment he first saw the content from that Wyong home.
"It was horrendous, unthinkable material. I could not believe this was happening to children. You would never want anyone to watch those videos."
It was the accent that rocked battle-hardened AFP Detective Leading Senior Constable Kate Laidler, despite her days spent chasing the filthiest predators.
"These children were clearly Australian," she said, referring to the victims in the mountains of videos she was faced with.
"We could tell from the accent and material … we are acutely aware we might be the only people who are looking for these children and it might be the only opportunity to rescue them. You feel this sense of pressure."
One mother was grateful her son had been saved from the cruel hands of former soccer coach Grant Harden, who recorded himself abusing several children and sent thousands of videos of it and other child abuse into the online syndicate in exchange for receiving abuse material from others.
But the harm that had already been done could never be reversed.
"You look back and think, 'how did I not see signs? How did we not know that this person was doing these things to our child?' " the mother asked.
"It's heartbreaking feeling like a failure as a parent … because someone hurt our child and we didn't know."
Harden was jailed for a minimum of 22 years – a sentence he intends to appeal. But the families he shattered are living with lifelong sentences.
They've shared their stories of betrayal and heartbreak to highlight an uncomfortable but incredibly important issue.
And finally, all men linked to the disgusting online syndicate can be revealed, from those who pleaded guilty to viewing some of its material to those who pleaded guilty to abusing children themselves.
Where to get help
If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
• If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone call the confidential crisis helpline
Safe to Talk
on 0800 044 334 or text 4334. (available 24/7)
•
Male Survivors Aotearoa
offers a range of confidential support at centres across New Zealand -
If you have been abused, remember it's not your fault.
