The investigation into a shootout that killed two FBI agents in 2021 led to the discovery of an international pedophile network, with most offenders living in the U.S. and Australia, an official announced Tuesday.
A joint operation between the FBI and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) — nicknamed Operation Bakis — has led to 79 arrests, 65 indictments, and 43 convictions in the United States; 19 alleged offenders in Australia are facing a total of 138 charges. Thirteen Australian children, some of whom were directly involved in the abuse, have also been removed from danger, the AFP has said.
The FBI worked alongside local police in the sunshine state and the AFP in six of Australia’s territories and states to bust pedophiles involved in the network.
AFP Commander Helen Schneider said:
The success of Operation Bakis was only possible because of the close working relationship between the AFP-led ACCCE [Australian Center to Counter Child Exploitation] and the FBI, and our dedicated personnel who never give up working to identify children who are being sexually assaulted or living with someone who is sharing child abuse material.
FBI Shootout Leads to International Pedophile Investigation
On Feb. 2, 2021, the FBI sent three agents to the residence of 55-year-old David Lee Huber in Sunrise, Florida, with a search warrant in aid of a child pornography case.
At first, the FBI believed the search of Huber’s apartment would be a run-of-the-mill investigation. But when agents approached the door of Huber’s apartment, he began to blind-fire at them, fatally hitting two and wounding one before he committed suicide.
When the FBI accessed Huber’s computer, it discovered evidence of an international pedophile ring and launched Operation Bakis.
In 2022, the agency informed the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation that it suspected some Australian citizens of being involved in a network that shared explicit child abuse material and child pornography on the dark web. They alleged that the interactions took place over a peer-to-peer network in which offenders shared illegal material over their devices without using a third-party server.
Since the outset of the operation, the FBI has opened 303 investigations, and a total of 43 individuals around the world are facing convictions for their involvement in the network.
Two Australians have faced official charges as of Aug. 8. One public servant in the Australian Capital Territory faces 14.5 years in jail after pleading guilty to a total of 24 charges in the territory’s Supreme Court. Another call center operator faces five years in prison for possessing five terabytes of child pornography and abuse material. The other suspects await future court dates.
Many of the suspects, including Huber, shared a background in computer programing. Huber ran a computer consulting company called Computer Troubleshooters 0512 with his then-wife in 2004 and registered a business called Huber Computer Consulting in 2006. Some of the Australian offenders also worked in fields requiring strong command of computer systems and information technology. These offenders used their tech expertise to share and access content anonymously within a network that shared child pornography.
“The complexity and anonymity of these platforms means that no agency or country can fight these threats alone,” FBI legal attaché Nitiana Mann said.
Following the arrests of those involved in the child abuse network, the AFP issued a statement and warning to those involved in heinous crimes against children: “If you choose to offend against children, it is only a matter of time before police come knocking on your door.”
Emma Verrigni is a rising sophomore at Hillsdale College studying history and journalism. A member of The American Spectator’s 2023 intern class, Emma enjoys reading philosophy and the news.
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