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March 19, 2002
90 Are Arrested in Inquiry Into Internet Child-Sex Ring
By DAVID STOUT
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ASHINGTON, March 18 — A nationwide Internet child-pornography ring has
been smashed with the arrest of about 90 people, including two Roman
Catholic priests, a school bus driver, a teacher's aide and a police
officer, the federal authorities said today.
"It is clear that a new marketplace for child pornography has emerged
from the dark corners of cyberspace," Attorney General John Ashcroft
said at a news briefing. "Innocent boys and girls have been targeted by
offenders who view them as sexual objects."
The suspects have been charged with various felonies, including
possession, production or distribution of child pornography, said Angela
Bell, a spokeswoman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The most
serious charges carry sentences of several years in prison upon
conviction, Ms. Bell said.
In addition, 27 of those arrested have admitted to having molested more
than 40 children, the F.B.I. said. Ms. Bell said that she did not know
much about the children's backgrounds and that the authorities were
"still trying to take them out of harm's way."
Mr. Ashcroft said investigations into child pornography often led to
evidence of actual molestation, so that indulging in pornography could
in no way be viewed as a harmless diversion. The attorney general and
the F.B.I. director, Robert S. Mueller III, said all 56 F.B.I. field
offices and numerous local law enforcement units were taking part in the
operation, which began in January 2001 in Houston after an undercover
agent there identified groups involved in child pornography.
One Web site advertised itself as "for people who love kids," the
authorities said. The site invited people to "post any type of messages
you like" and offered a postscript: "If we all work together, we will
have the best group on the Net."
The Houston groups used "the Candyman" as a general cyberheading,
prompting the Justice Department to call its antipornography effort
Operation Candyman. The authorities said that the groups' Web sites had
been shut down, and that many more arrests were expected. The
authorities counted about 7,000 computer addresses in the Candyman
groups, with about 2,400 of those outside the United States.
Subpoenas were served upon Internet-service providers. More than 200
searches of homes and computers were carried out, the F.B.I. said.
Ms. Bell said some arrests were made weeks or months ago and had already
been publicized. One priest was arrested in Baltimore and the other in
St. Louis, she said. The Baltimore arrest, of the Rev. Thomas Rydzewski,
35, on charges of possessing pornography, occurred on Dec. 13 and was
widely reported in that city at the time.
Seven people have been arrested in Houston and five in Miami, the
authorities said. Four people have been arrested in Albany, four in
Philadelphia, three in New York City and one in Newark.
The F.B.I. said one woman was among those arrested. In addition to the
two priests, several other clergymen are suspected, the F.B.I. said.
Many other suspects had jobs that put them in close contact with
children. They include a school bus driver in Albany, a teacher's aide
at a preschool and day-care center in Las Vegas, a child photographer in
Philadelphia and law enforcement professionals in Pittsburgh and San
Diego, the F.B.I. said.
Little League baseball coaches and a registered foster-care parent are
among the suspects. Ms. Bell said she believed that some of the men were
married and had children of their own.
The F.B.I. did not name any of the suspects. One, a respiration
therapist in Little Rock, Ark., has committed suicide.
Mr. Ashcroft and F.B.I. officials said there would be more
anti-pornography campaigns.
"I mean, we're dealing with children here," said Bruce J. Gebhardt,
F.B.I. executive assistant director for criminal investigations and
cybercrime. "I'd like to see one sweep a day."
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