A 74-year-old South Australian man has appeared in Adelaide Magistrates Court after being charged with child abuse offences.
Australian Border Force (ABF) officers at Adelaide Airport identified the man and selected him for a baggage examination when he arrived on an overseas flight on Sunday July 6th.
It will be alleged that officers located sexually-explicit material on the man’s mobile phone during the search.
ABF officers alerted investigators from the South Australia Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team (SA JACET) – comprising officers from AFP and South Australia Police – who seized the man’s mobile device for further forensic examination.
The man was charged with one count of procuring a child to engage in sexual activity outside Australia. The maximum penalty for these offences is 15 years’ imprisonment.
AFP Detective Superintendent Melinda Adam said AFP’s partnerships with law enforcement agencies locally, nationally and internationally, are vital to disrupt insidious child abuse offending.
“Our dedicated investigators are committed to protecting children and will track alleged offenders wherever they may be and bring them before the courts,” she said.
ABF Superintendent Jody Griswood said ABF officers are highly trained to use all available intelligence to identify potential threats during routine border processing.
“This detection shows the critical role of our frontline officers to stop the spread of abhorrent material in the Australian community,” Superintendent Griswood said.
“Every intercepted photo, video, or message file can prevent a potential crime and safeguard a real child.”
The man is scheduled to reappear before the same court on September 2nd.
