In the 2023-24 financial year, the ACCCE Child Protection Triage Unit received 58,503 reports of online child sexual exploitation.
This equates to an average of 160 reports per day or 4875 reports a month.
Each report contains images and videos of children being sexually assaulted or exploited for the sexual gratification of online child sex offenders.
Case study Operation Tenterfield: Protecting children from sexual abuse
In August 2022, the AFP launched Operation Tenterfield in response to the discovery of child abuse material on the dark web which was suspected to have been recorded in a childcare setting.
Since 2014, an international effort by victim identification specialists to identify the children in the images and videos had proven unsuccessful. However, after a concerted effort, the AFP investigators were able to trace objects in the background of the alleged child abuse material to a Brisbane childcare centre.
Within 48 hours, AFP members executed 3 search warrants and located self-produced child abuse material on electronic devices. A forensic examination revealed more than 4,000 images and videos allegedly created by the offender.
The AFP coordinated a joint agency taskforce under Operation Tenterfield at the AFP-led ACCCE to review the more than 4,000 seized images and videos. Through meticulous examination of this material, victim identification specialists and investigators helped identify 92 child victims of an alleged offender who had worked in child care in Queensland, NSW and overseas.
Specially trained AFP members were then tasked with confirming the identities of all Queensland child victims and notifying families and victims. This task included gathering evidence to support a criminal prosecution against the alleged offender and, importantly, ensuring the health, safety and wellbeing of the people involved by connecting them with trauma and counselling services.
In response to alleged offending that took place in NSW, Operation Tenterfield established a joint agency agreement between the AFP and the NSW Police Force. With assistance from the AFP, the NSW Police Force notified families and individuals identified through the investigation. This collaborative and timely response highlights the strong partnership between the AFP and the NSW Police Force and demonstrates their ongoing commitment to protecting children from sexual abuse.
Operation Tenterfield has been a complex investigation involving up to 35 AFP members, with response and enforcement activities continuing into 2024. The investigation has resulted in 1,623 child sexual abuse charges in Brisbane, Sydney and overseas. The AFP continues to work with international partners to identify 4 children recorded in child abuse material created overseas. These matters are currently before the court.
The investigative tactics used under Operation Tenterfield highlight the AFP’s strategy of strong collaboration with our state, territory and international law enforcement partners to respond to human exploitation crime. The AFP is continuing to work with other new and valuable stakeholders, such as Queensland Health, to best support victims of this crime.