#331: 05-14-04 DEPARTMENTS OF JUSTICE, HOMELAND SECURITY ANNOUNCE CHILD PORNOGRAPHY FILE-SHARING CRACKDOWN

[R. A. Hettinga]

<http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2004/May/04_crm_331.htm>


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 FRIDAY, MAY 14, 2004
 WWW.USDOJ.GOV

 CRM
 (202) 514-2008
 TDD (202) 514-1888


 DEPARTMENTS OF JUSTICE, HOMELAND SECURITY ANNOUNCE CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
FILE-SHARING CRACKDOWN


Law Enforcement Initiative Targets Child Pornography Over Peer-To-Peer Networks




WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, the Department of Homeland Securityms U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement, and the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task
Forces today announced a national law enforcement initiative aimed at
combating the growing volume of illegal child pornography distributed
through peer-to-peer (P2P) file trafficking computer networks.

 Attorney General John Ashcroft, Assistant Attorneys General Christopher A.
Wray of the Criminal Division and Deborah Daniels of the Office of Justice
Programs, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Michael J. Garcia, FBI Deputy Assistant
Director Keith Lourdeau, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention Administrator J. Robert Flores and Sgt. Scott Christensen of the
Nebraska State Patrol announced the initiative at a news conference this
afternoon in Washington. The law enforcement operation, which began in the
Fall of 2003, has already resulted in the execution of hundreds of searches
nationwide, and the identification of thousands of suspect computers used
to access the child pornography. The FBI, ICE and the ICACs have opened
more than 1,000 domestic investigations into the distribution and
possession of child pornography and conducted more than 350 searches.

 More than 65 individuals have been arrested and charged with crimes to
date as a result of this law enforcement effort, with coordination by the
Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the Criminal Division at the
Department of Justice and U.S. Attorneysm Offices across the country. These
cases have charged not only offenses related to the possession and
distribution of child pornography, but also sexual abuse of children.
Further, the investigations have identified several individuals who have
previously been convicted of sex offenses and several registered sex
offenders.

 lNo one should be able to avoid prosecution for contributing to the abuse
and exploitation of the nationms children,n said Attorney General Ashcroft.
lThe Department of Justice stands side-by-side with our partners in the law
enforcement community to pursue those who victimize our children under the
perceived, but false, cloak of anonymity that the peer-to-peer networks
provide.n

 lThis aggressive, multi-jurisdictional enforcement action will help bring
justice to those who exploit our children,n said Assistant Attorney General
Wray. lThis is an impressive demonstration of how law enforcement can
effectively address the problem of technology being used to commit illicit
and abhorrent crimes against children.n

 lThe men and women of state and local law enforcement who comprise the 39
Internet Crimes Against Children task forces are to be commended for their
efforts that have resulted in over 50 arrests nationwide,n said Deborah
Daniels, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs.
lThe unprecedented cooperation of law enforcement to track the sale and
trade of child pornography over the Internet has made this country a safer
place for our children.n

 lTodayms announcement sends a clear message that the digital environment
will not offer sanctity to those pedophiles who lurk in peer-to-peer
networks. We will identify you. We will pursue you. We will bring you to
justice,n said FBI Director Robert Mueller. lTodayms announcement also
raises public awareness to the inherent risks associated with file-sharing
networks. Parents must know that access to these networks is free and
exposure to child pornography is often a frightening reality.n

 lICE will use its technical expertise and its legal authorities to target
those who would purchase child pornography over the internet or trade in
those despicable images," said Michael J. Garcia, Department of Homeland
Security Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. lBy
partnering with our colleagues at the Department of Justice and in local
and state law enforcement, we will uncover these transactions and bring the
offenders out of the anonymity of cyberspace and into a court of law.n

 lAs individuals we have a responsibility to provide love and guidance to
our children; as a society, we have a collective duty to defend our
children from predators who would stalk them,n said J. Robert Flores,
Administrator for the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention. lThe Internet Crimes Against Children task forces were
developed to prevent child abuse and punish abusers and this joint effort
between local and federal law enforcement will send a strong message to
those who would exploit our children.n

 The multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional P2P initiative, combining the
resources of federal, state and local law enforcement, is part of an
ongoing effort to keep pace with emerging technologies that are being used
to commit, facilitate and even hide crimes. Unlike traditional computer
networks, which employ the use of a server to exchange files, peer-to-peer
networks allow users to connect their computers directly to one another,
without the use of a central server. Once a user installs a peer-to-peer
software application on his or her computer, he or she can directly access
and search the files designated for distribution on any of the computers
that are using the network at that moment in time, and then download
desired files to his or her computer.

 Investigators and agents from the participating agencies used several
techniques - including undercover work - to infiltrate the P2P networks and
identify those who have distributed and taken possession of child
pornography images.

 Several cases illustrate the scope of the P2P law enforcement operation:
	* 	 Investigators in California, working with the Wyoming Attorney
Generalms Office, Division of Criminal Investigation, identified a P2P
client named Pedokiller. Jimmy Richard Morrison, a 40-year-old male from
Modesto, California, allegedly had countless images of underage girls on
the wall of his bedroom. A search of his computer revealed thousands of
images of child pornography, along with photos and videos from actual
victims. Morrison admitted knowingly distributing images of child
pornography, and when asked why he used the P2P network to distribute
images, he replied, lBecause the cops are in the chat rooms.n Morrison was
indicted in the Federal District Court of Wyoming for distribution of child
pornography, and also charged with other criminal offenses in the Eastern
District of California. The suspect is in custody in California pending
trial.
	* 	 Following a P2P investigation by the Nebraska State Patrol,
Jeremiah Zalesky of Lincoln, Nebraska, was arrested on state charges of
sexually assaulting a child after evidence developed that Zalesky allegedly
molested the young daughter of a couple with whom he had been staying. A
subsequent search of his computer found 10 images of child pornography.
	* 	 An FBI investigation in New York led to the identification of a
subject who allegedly distributed, received and possessed child pornography
using P2P networks. The investigation also found that the subject, Matthew
Fling, allegedly molested two girls, ages 6 and 8, during the past four
years. An examination of the subjectms computer revealed hundreds of child
pornographic images and movies. In February 2004, Fling was indicted in the
Northern District of New York on federal charges child pornography charges,
and he was arrested in March 2004. State Police officials are handling the
sexual abuse allegations.
	* 	 Earlier this week, a federal grand jury in Houston, Texas,
indicted 28-year-old Stephen Alan Gardner on charges of distributing images
of child pornography from his home computer, and possession of child
pornography. According to court documents, a file containing movies
depicting children being sexually assaulted had been made available for
sharing from a computer at Gardnerms home using a P2P software program.
Gardner is currently being held without bond in the Harris County, Texas,
jail on charges filed in the state of Colorado involving the sexual assault
of a six-year-old child.
	* 	 During the course of a multi-state investigation, ICE agents in
Arizona received child pornography from a peer-to-peer application user who
they later identified as 19-year-old Marlon Winston. During the
investigation, Winston indicated that he started using peer-to-peer
applications to access music, but later moved on to images and movies of
child pornography. Winston used simple search terms to find the materials,
and noted that his habit grew by ljust clickingn image after image. Winston
was arrested in December 2003, and pleaded guilty to child pornography
charges in February of this year. On May 12, 2004, Winston was sentenced to
37 months in prison and three years' supervised release. Winston will be
required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.

 Individuals arrested and charged in connection with this initiative are,
of course, presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The
maximum federal sentence for the distribution of child pornography is 20
years in prison. The PROTECT Act, enacted on April 30, 2003, also created a
mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison for this crime. If an
individual committed a prior sex abuse offense, the mandatory minimum is 15
years in prison and the statutory maximum is 40 years.

 The following is a brief rundown of the roles played by various agencies
in the P2P operation:

 Internet Crimes Against Children Task Forces

In 1998, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
of the Department of Justice funded ICAC Task Forces in jurisdictions all
over the country. There are 39 task forces comprised of more than 175 law
enforcement agencies.

 The 39 ICAC Task Forces conducted an undercover investigation code-named
lOperation Peerlessn to investigate the distribution of child pornography
over the Internet. Undercover operations have identified more than 3,000
computers worldwide sharing child pornography using the P2P networks. To
date, ICACs efforts have resulted in the execution of more than 196 search
warrants, and 50 arrests.

 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security

In September 2003, investigators at the ICE Cyber Crime Center in Virginia
initiated a P2P operation known as lOperation Peer Pursuitn to target
individuals who exchange child pornography images over the Internet using
P2P networks.

 Working with investigators in ICE offices nationwide, ICACs and other law
enforcement agencies, ICE investigators have opened 213 cases, identified
46 foreign leads, executed 72 search warrants and arrested 10 individuals
responsible for trading tens of thousands of images of child pornography.

 Operation Peer Pursuit is an outgrowth of Operation Predator, ICEms
comprehensive, nationwide initiative designed to protect young people from
pedophiles, human traffickers and other predatory criminals. Since its
inception in July 2003, Operation Predator has resulted in the arrest of
more than 2,600 child sex predators nationwide.

 The Federal Bureau of Investigation

As part of the FBIms P2P operation, codenamed lPeer Pressure,n FBI agents
and prosecutors from the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the
Justice Department developed a protocol for investigating the distribution
of images of child pornography through P2P networks. Agents, acting in an
undercover capacity, were able to successfully conduct 166 on-line sessions
in P2P networks, targeting individuals who were openly offering multiple
child pornography images. Of the 106 subjects identified as a result of the
FBI investigation, 32 were determined to have had access to children, three
were registered sex offenders and 23 had criminal histories. Most
importantly, FBI agents identified and rescued eight children who had been
molested.

 The FBI operation has led to 103 searches to date, the arrest of seven
subjects and nine indictments.

 The Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the Criminal Division,
U.S. Attorneysm Offices

Through the coordinated efforts of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity
Section of the Criminal Division and 29 U.S. Attorneysm Offices across the
country, more than a dozen defendants have been charged with federal crimes
related to child pornography trafficking over P2P networks.

 For further information about the P2P operations, please contact the
following offices:
	* 	 Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, (202) 514-2007
	* 	 Office of Justice Programs, for information about ICAC, Office
of Communications, (202) 307-0703
	* 	 Federal Bureau of Investigation, Office of Public Affairs, (202)
324-3691
	* 	 Department of Homeland Securityms Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, (202) 514-2648

 ###

04-331

-- 
-----------------
R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah at ibuc.com>
The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'