Dallas police and FBI investigators are systematically going through a list of 23,000 people who bought child porn on the Internet and prosecuting them, reports the Dallas Morning News. Dubbed “Operation Site-Key,” the case has already led to 51 child-pornography convictions across the country, including 17 in North Texas.
An Ohio police officer’s wife spotted the pornographic images when she innocently typed the words “sweet hot spicy” while looking for a recipe on an Internet search engine in 2001. The site that popped up displaying illegal child pornography was based in California, using a Dallas Internet hosting service.
The defendants “come from all walks of life,” said Dallas police Lt. Bill Walsh, who oversees the child-exploitation division. “The majority of these people don’t have a criminal history.” The operation led to the arrest last August of a New Jersey state superior court judge who routinely presided over child abuse cases. A Catholic priest in the Northeast is also under suspicion. Those arrested in Dallas include nursing home workers, self-employed businessmen, and well-educated white-collar workers.
The people who generate and profit the most from the pornography have eluded prosecution. Investigators believe they are in Russia, and authorities are working to track them down.
Link: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/042804dnmetpornsting.b4b33.html