The FBI raided a child porn operation in November, but instead of shutting it down the agency continued to operate the image sharing operation to nab thousands of pedophiles.
Nebraska-based agents r aided the large child pornography service in November in the hopes of catching users who were swapping thousands of images of children being raped and abused. For the next two weeks the FBI ran the child porn operation while collecting information on the more than 5,000 customers.
The approach signals a departure for the FBI in trying to stamp out child porn distribution. Agents have previously posed as child porn dealers, but it doesn’t appear the agency has ever allowed for child porn to be distributed under its watch.
There was not much information available on the Nebraska investigation, including what charges may come out of it.
“This remains an ongoing investigation, and local court rules and Department of Justice policy prohibit me from providing more information at this time,” said Sandy Breault, spokeswoman for the FBI Omaha Division. “As in any given matter, if charges are filed, they will eventually become a matter of public record.”
The news of the FBI child porn sting comes a few weeks after a successful manhunt for a child porn suspect . The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency released photos shared by Danish authorities of a man believed to be raping a young girl on tape.
Close to 24 hours after releasing images of the balding, portly suspect, authorities received a tip that led to his arrest.
The child porn operation seized by the FBI was described as an online bulletin board that primarily advertised sharing of child pornography. When it was shut down, the site known as “Website A” had more than 5,600 users and 24,000 posts, almost all of them relating to child pornography. At least 10,000 photos of children being sexually abused were shared, authorities said.
Posts on the site also shared information about raping children, including threads like “How to lure a child in my car,” “Meeting other pedos in real life,” and “Do kids LIKE anal sex?”Other posts on the child porn site seized by the FBI offered information on how to avoid detection from police.