29 November 2024, 1:51pm
Media Statement
AFP Statement on the sentencing of a Gold Coast Childcare worker for rape and sexual assaults
Editor’s note: Audio and video grabs from Assistant Commissioner Justine Gough are available via Hightail.
The following statement can be attributed to AFP Assistant Commissioner Justine Gough
The AFP recognises that today is a deeply traumatic day for so many people whose lives have been permanently affected by the crimes of one man.
As always, our thoughts are with the families and victims and we will continue to offer support to each and every one of them. The bravery of the victims and their families has humbled our investigators and we know any jail sentence will not be enough for those whose trust was breached in such an horrific manner.
The AFP acknowledges the painstaking work done by so many of our skilled investigators and specialists that led to the offender being arrested, charged and jailed so he can no longer hurt children.
This is a job nobody wishes we had to do, but unfortunately there are too many predators who prey on our children.
Of the cases where it is not known who or where a victim is, global law enforcement posts images of online child abuse to a secure international police database in the hope another agency, or a collaboration of investigators, can help identify the children who are yet to be saved.
None of the cases on the database are ever closed as identifying and saving every child victim no matter where or when the offending occurred is the top priority for victim identification experts.
AFP investigators use every available opportunity to scour the unsolved cases on the database or specifically revisit an image or video when they have another idea to try to find a way through.
The AFP’s investigation into the offender was not sparked by a report of crime but because of our truly dedicated AFP members, many of whom are parents.
At the time in 2014, the 10 videos and 46 images this man uploaded to the dark web were no different and our investigators determined they would never give up – even with the knowledge the perpetrator and victims may not be in Australia.
AFP victim identification experts kept going back to the images and videos, searching for any vital clue that would reveal the identity of the man or his victims and their location.
When the AFP pieced together the clues from the images – including bed sheets and other distinguishing features of the rooms – investigators quickly identified the man and, within 24 hours, had executed a search warrant and arrested him.
He has been in custody since that day, unable to abuse anymore children.
About 50 AFP members have worked on this case since 2014 and I want to pay tribute to each one including our victim identification specialists and the Queensland Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team.
We also thank our partners in the Queensland Police Service, New South Wales Police Force, Department of Home Affairs and our global law enforcement partners, who we have collaborated with since 2014, to bring this man to justice.
As always, our thoughts remain with the victims and their families.
