Accused Aussie paedophile arrested
amid coronavirus chaos in Italy
ABC Kimberley By Erin Parke
An accused paedophile from Australia has been arrested amid the coronavirus lockdowns in Italy nine years after being charged, and following an ABC investigation that discovered him (6th story on link) living in a seaside resort town.
Charles Batham left the country in 2011 after West Australian police charged him with 31 child sex offences, which he has always denied.
An ABC story published in February resulted in a flurry of fresh information and sightings, prompting police to restart their mothballed efforts to find him.
Mr Batham was this month found living in the picturesque town of Caorle, north-east of Venice, with Italian police this week arresting the 75-year-old at the request of Australian authorities.
Charles Batham appeared in a 2007 film about ultralight aircraft. (YouTube)
Shock phone call
One of Mr Batham's alleged victims, who claims she was molested as a young girl while living in Broome, said she was shocked to hear of the arrest. "The police phoned me and I was really surprised," she said. "There's still a long way to go, but it's better than the limbo I was living in before.
"It sounds like it could take quite a while to get him back to Australia, especially with everything going down with coronavirus over there, but I'm really hoping that it will happen. To be honest, I thought he'd die from coronavirus before [an arrest]."
Mr Batham is yet to face the charges in court and has denied the allegations to friends and colleagues.
The case went silent
The ABC story prompted more than a dozen people from across Australia and Europe to provide details of Mr Batham's life before and after his decade running a tourism business in Broome.
It was during this time that he allegedly raped and made indecent recordings of young girls and was charged by police. The charges included 11 counts of indecently recording a child under 13, and six counts of sexual penetration of a child under 13.
Mr Batham broke bail and took a commercial flight to Malaysia without being detained by authorities, a situation slammed by victims' advocates.
For nine years the case went silent, with no public appeals for information about Mr Batham's whereabouts, despite Interpol issuing a Red Notice for his arrest.
The ABC report revealed Mr Batham, who had joint British and Australian citizenship, was issued in 2014 with a fresh passport under a different name in the United Kingdom.
Fresh photos emerge
Charles Batham was reportedly living in Turkey and later moved to Italy. (Facebook)
It appears Mr Batham has been living a relaxed and open lifestyle in Europe.
A source in Turkey, who asked to remain anonymous, provided the ABC with the first photographs of Mr Batham since he left Australia. He was pictured chatting and laughing at a social gathering.
Another man, who asked not to be identified, reported that Mr Batham stayed in a villa he owned in Turkey in 2013 and 2014. The man said he was "disgusted" to learn that a person facing child sex charges stayed at his villa, as his young son had been living near the property as well.
The ABC can reveal that WA police were made aware of Mr Batham's location in Turkey during this period and had arrest papers issued, but he had left the country before an arrest was made.
Living a public life in Italy
Several years after leaving Turkey, Mr Batham was apparently so comfortable in his new home in Italy that he engaged in a public spat with the government over aircraft registration.
Italian newspaper reports referred to him as Charles Edwin Shannon, which was the name Mr Batham adopted in 2014.
In 2017, he is reported to have gone to court in Caorle on charges of breaching the country's navigation code in relation to a dispute over ownership of an ultralight aircraft. The Italian press this week covered Mr Batham's arrest and reported he was being held in a prison in the northern province of Pordenone.
Mr Batham ran a tourism business in Broome for many years.
Coronavirus causes extradition delays
Australian authorities now face a lengthy court process to bring Mr Batham to Australia, a process complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Travel bans mean WA police cannot travel to Italy to oversee the process, nor can Mr Batham be brought into the country.
Former Victorian police officer Glen Hulley runs the child protection charity Project Karma, and has been involved in similar extradition attempts. He said there would be a lengthy court process before the charges could be tested in an Australian court.
"Australian authorities will have to apply to the courts in Italy for him to be extradited, and Mr Batham has the right to appeal that and oppose it," Mr Hulley said. "We know from experience that the Italian court system is quite backlogged, and you add to that Italy being the epicentre of the outbreak of coronavirus, and it's quite a complicated situation."
Mr Hulley said despite that, it was a great example of how quickly a person could be found once the public became involved.
"The ABC has gone public with their investigation, it's brought a spotlight to the case, and then our organisation and the police and the Australian Government have jumped onboard, and it's led to a great outcome," he said.
Not sure you can call it an 'outcome' at this point, but it's a good step.
Brisbane man in Court for child exploitation allegations
The Queensland Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team (QLD JACET) has charged a 38-year-old Brisbane man following an investigation into the alleged possession of child abuse material.
The man is due to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court this morning (Monday, 30 March) to answer these charges.
Australian Federal Police (AFP) QLD JACET investigators began inquiries into the man’s online activities after the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) received a referral from the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).
On 12 March 2020, members of the QLD JACET and AFP Digital Forensics Team executed a search warrant at a home in the Brisbane suburb of Eagleby.
During a search of the home, investigators seized two mobile phones, a hard drive and four USBs which allegedly contained child abuse material.
The man has been charged with seven offences, including:
Six counts of knowingly possessing child exploitation material, contrary to section 228D of the Criminal Code Act 1899 (Qld).
One count of using a carriage service to make available child pornography material contrary to section 474.19(1)(a)(iii) of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth).
The maximum penalty for these offences is 14 years imprisonment and 15 years imprisonment (respectively).
AFP Assistant Commissioner Northern Command Lesa Gale said investigating offences against children online remains a priority for law enforcement, even in times of global disruption.
“The AFP, through the ACCCE, and our international partners continue to work tirelessly to halt the spread of child abuse material,” she said. “Anyone who thinks they can use the current situation to avoid detection is wrong.
“This arrest shows our dedication to fighting child sexual abuse and bringing those who commit these offences before the court. The ACCCE will continue to provide critical support to JACETs and non-government organisations to combat online child exploitation. This work is a priority and will not stop.”
Members of the public who have any information about people involved in the possession or sharing of child exploitation material are urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
You can also make a report online by alerting the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation via the Report Abuse button at www.accce.gov.au/report.
Australian Flight Attendant Jailed for 18.5 Years
for Serious Child Sexual Abuse
MATEUSZ MASZCZYNSKIPaddle Your Own Kanoo
Melbourne Airport
An Australian flight attendant abused his position of trust over a seven-year period, abusing dozens of young children in the Philippines where he travelled both through his work as an international flight attendant and during vacations. Today, Chih Chen was sentenced to 18 and a half years in jail after being found guilty of 35 serious child sex and exploitation offences.
The 52-year-old former flight attendant who was sacked after the allegations came to light in 2017 abused at least 26 female child victims in the Philippines who were aged between 12 and 17 years. Chen travelled to the Philippines on 25 separate occasions between 2010 and 2017.
He will have to serve at least 14-years in prison before being considered for parole. Chen has been held in custody since his arrest in June 2017.
Chen faced three charges of persistent sexual abuse of a child under 16, seven charges of engaging in sexual intercourse with a child under 16 and 12 charges of production child pornography material. He was also charged with eight counts of ‘procuring’ a child to engage in sexual activity and one count each of importing and possession of child pornography.
During the trial, it was revealed that Chen had amassed more than 9000 pictures and videos of his victims. Chen paid some of his victims and sent them abusive messages asking them to find him new victims – including their own siblings.
In 2013, a pilot for British Airways was also accused of using his position to abuse young children who he met in Africa through his work with the airline’s in-house charity. At the time, British Airways said the allegations were both “shocking and horrifying” but that it did not take any “legal responsibility” for his actions.
Nonetheless, British Airways agreed to pay an undisclosed sum of money to his victims.
NZ Millionaire Digital Child Sex Offender
Released Early
Press Release: Sensible Sentencing TrustReleased Early
The Sensible Sentencing Trust (SST) are in absolute shock at the early release of multi-millionaire child sex offender Martin Lawes, after only a mere 18 months into his 4 year and 6 month jail term.
Lawes, a former chairman of an Auckland community board, paid over $100,000.00 to live stream child sex abuse material, giving instructions via Skype for specific, violent, sexual acts.
And for that he only got 4.5 years? Good grief!
“This man is a danger and a threat to innocent young lives, using his wealth to satisfy his disgusting deviant behaviour. Every single image, video, and live streamed sex show involved an innocent child. He claimed he was stressed and was financially helping the people involved in his horrific crimes as they were living in poverty!!”
Typical twisted logic of a paedophile. They convince themselves they are actually doing good. If they faced the notion of how dreadfully evil they actually are, they couldn't live with themselves.
“Where is the deterrent when someone as depraved as Lawes and who seemingly has little understanding of the long term harm he has inflicted on his Victims young lives, can get out of prison after serving less than ½ the sentence imposed!”
Jess said SST had urged the Crown to appeal the original sentence as believed it was too short given the gravity of his offending. The Crown did appeal however it was declined.
The Crown seems to have little interest in protecting children.
China investigating ‘nth rooms’ child pornography
sites after outcry in South Korea
Phoebe ZhangSouth China Morning Post
Cho Ju-bin outside a police station in Seoul on Wednesday. The 24-year-old is accused of running the “nth rooms” in South Korea. Photo: Reuters
The websites were all based in foreign countries and were no longer accessible after the official investigation began, according to an online notice posted by China’s National Office Against Pornographic and Illegal Publications on Saturday.
“We are tracking down tips that reflect sexual assault of minors, and if there are websites or personnel in China, there will be punishment according to the law,” the notice said. “We welcome tips from media and the public to create a clean cyberspace.”
The sex abuse scandal emerged in South Korea last week after at least 74 people, including 16 underage girls, were tricked and blackmailed into sharing sexual images of themselves on Telegram. The group chats on the encrypted messaging app are called “nth rooms” and customers paid up to US$1,200 to access them. They also had to upload their own sexual abuse videos or images as their ticket to enter the group chats.
Cho Ju-bin, a 24-year-old better known by the alias “The Doctor”, has been accused of running the rooms. His identity was revealed by the South Korean police following a public uproar over the case, with millions signing a petition to stamp out the sites. Members of the public have also requested the names of the 260,000 users of the chat rooms be revealed.
Chinese authorities are investigating websites said to be similar to the “nth rooms” in the South Korean case. Photo: Handout
The Chinese websites were similar to the “nth rooms” in that they lured users to pay to watch pornographic content, and encouraged them to upload more videos by awarding them credits that could be used to access other content, The Beijing News reported on Friday.
The websites were full of naked photos of minors, with titles such as “four-year-old girl”, “beautiful young girl”, and “high school student”. Once a user clicked on the photo, a notice popped up asking them to register and pay before they could download the content. Users paid from 30 yuan (US$4) to 3,000 yuan (US$420) for content.
Beijing-based IT worker Wang Yaodong told The Beijing News that such websites were often based overseas to avoid surveillance by China’s cyberspace agency and public security bureaus. Website operators must apply to the authorities to register a domain and rent a server in China.
Chinese took to social media to express shock and fury over the local versions of “nth rooms”, with some questioning how they had been allowed to operate in the country.
“Can you imagine your children, or your friends’ children being exploited by those websites? Those who speak up for them must be profiting from these pornographic sites as well,” read one comment on Weibo, China’s Twitter. Amid the outrage over the case in both China and South Korea, some have defended their “right to pornography”.
Shaoxi, a feminist blogger in Beijing, said there were many similar websites on the internet, and they always returned after being reported and shut down. She said she knew of sites that had been closed by authorities but reappeared under a different domain name soon after.
“These websites always have their servers abroad, so if one is shut down, they can quickly change to another one,” she said.
The people who were making and watching the videos needed to be punished in order to get rid of the sites altogether, she said.
“Every time they shut down a website, they only catch an online operator, but the people who have forced those girls to appear in the videos aren’t caught, nor are those watching the videos, and they can regroup any time,” Shaoxi said. “This is the reason so many in South Korea are signing petitions to punish the users of the ‘nth rooms’ as well.”
=========================================================================================
Kitchener, ON, woman who took part in
sexual abuse of child gets day parole
Waterloo Region Recordsexual abuse of child gets day parole
KITCHENER — A Kitchener woman who took part in the sexual abuse of a seven-year-old Hamilton girl has been released on day parole.
"Those crimes are reprehensible and cannot be tolerated by any society," Justice Tony Leitch said in sentencing her.
The Parole Board of Canada granted Lucas day parole last week. She is now living in a halfway house, her defence lawyer, Hal Mattson, said in an interview on Sunday.
Lucas pleaded guilty to sexual interference, making child pornography and possession of child pornography.
She accompanied Rui DaSilva from Waterloo to the girl's Hamilton home on April 26, 2016. In the basement, they sexually abused the girl, a scenario the mother's boyfriend arranged by offering the child up on Craigslist.
"The abuse was prolonged over several minutes," the judge said.
Lucas was convicted for that one night, but she did "nothing" to prevent more abuse, "reporting it to nobody," Leitch said.
DaSilva, 40, admitted to travelling twice from Waterloo to sexually assault the girl. He was sentenced to eight years in prison.
John Gallagher, 50, of Hamilton, was sentenced to three years and seven months for possessing and making child pornography. The mother's now ex-boyfriend, 35, pleaded guilty to sexual interference, making child pornography and possessing child pornography. His identity is covered by a publication ban. The sentence he received is unclear.
Leighton Buzzard, UK, man jailed for over four years after sexually assaulting young girl
A 53-year-old man from Leighton Buzzard has been jailed for four-and-a-half years for sexually assaulting a young girl.
Primo Boeretto, of Hartwell Drive, Leighton Buzzard, was sentenced at Luton Crown Court last Monday (23 March) after being found guilty by a unanimous jury of sexually assaulting a child.
He will serve a prison sentence of four-and-a-half years, with an additional three years to run concurrently.
Some years after the attack, the girl, who was then 12, found the courage to disclose to her best friend what had happened to her and staff at her school were alerted. The victim’s mother was informed and she called the police which led to Boeretto’s arrest.
“It wasn’t an easy process for her to go through and I am glad Boeretto has been sent to prison for what he did to her.
“Child sexual abuse is the most horrendous trauma for a child to experience – it not only ruins their childhood, but stays with them throughout adulthood. We will not tolerate this type of crime in our county and will do all we can to support victims and put these perpetrators behind bars.
“I would like to encourage anyone who had been abused, no matter how long ago it happened, to come forward and tell us and we will do everything we can to get justice for you.”
Police arrest father for alleged sexual abuse of daughter in Maldives
Ahmed AihamThe Edition
Maldives Police Service on Sunday, arrested a 40-year-old man over sexually assaulting his 14-year-old daughter. The arrest was made at approximately 1815 hrs under a court order on March 29.
Police disclosed that the crime was reported earlier on March 28 in the North Police Division, which serves the atolls of Noonu, Raa, Baa and Lhaviyani.
Police reiterated that all cases involving children are investigated with utmost seriousness.
As per the Child Right's Protection Act that came into effect on 02 February 2020, authorities have not disclosed identifying details pertaining to the victim or the island on which the crime occurred. Further, an ombudsman that can reveal such information has not yet been declared.
A significant number of child sexual abuse cases were reported to the authorities throughout January, following the surfacing of a shocking case involving the sexual abuse of a two-year-old. Based on reports, police have to date, made numerous arrests and have stated that the investigations were underway.
There are 1192 islands in the Maldives. The ones named above are in this group somewhere.
‘Lax verdict’ in Belgium’s ‘biggest child pornography case ever,’ says Child Focus
The verdict is "a slap in the face of all victims,"
the organisation said in a statement on its website. Credit: Belga
Child Focus is outraged by the “lax verdict” for the accused men in what the organisation has called “the biggest child pornography case” in Belgium, as three of the perpetrators could soon be at large again.
On Tuesday, the correctional court of Dendermonde found four men guilty of possessing, creating and distributing child pornography, incitement to child abuse, child abuse, and human trafficking for a total of 13 years. For a fifth man, the judge first wants a psychiatric examination to know if he suffers from a mental disorder, reports De Morgen.
I can save you the time and money - they all suffer from a mental disorder!
The Great Belgium Pedophile/Torture/Murder Scandal and Its Cover-up
“I have been in this sector for almost 25 years and thought I had seen everything. But never everything in one file, like now,” CEO of Child Focus, the Centre for Missing and Sexually Exploited Children, Heidi De Pauw, told Het Laatste Nieuws.
The men, two Belgians, a Briton and a Dutchman, received an effective prison sentence between five and sixteen years. However, a large part of that sentence has already been served in pre-trial detention, and only half of the sentence has to be carried out, according to Child Focus. “Except for two, the accused men may soon be at large again,” the organisation added.
The verdict is “a slap in the face of all victims,” the organisation, acting civil party in the case, said in a statement on its website. “Think of all the suffering that was inflicted. These victims are scarred for life and, unlike the perpetrators, they do not come off so easy. Not after 5, 6, 7 or 16 years (or half of that in the event of a possible early release), because they carry the scars with them for the rest of their lives,” they added.
The court is sending “a completely wrong signal to (potential) perpetrators, and the population” with this verdict, Child Focus said, pointing to the 15 terabytes of sexual abuse images of minors the accused were (partly) responsible for.
“If you know that this matches all the texts from fifteen major university libraries, then the terrible reality is such that we have to talk about millions of photos and videos of defenceless children. Millions of abuse images, from every category (from newborn babies to violent content), and many of which are new material,” the organisation stated.
“They were exchanged at Christmas markets, but also through social media, private messages, chats, team viewer, the dark web and other means of communication,” it added.
Additionally, the organisation denounces the lack of guilt on the part of the perpetrators, of which some said that “they are paedophiles and there is nothing they can do about it,” or there was no therapy available.
The light punishment “almost nullifies” the hard work of the police investigators who succeeded in uncovering a broadly branched and incredibly complex network in the fight against the sexual exploitation of children, said Child Focus.
Maïthé Chini
The Brussels Times
Londonderry man acquitted in child sex abuse case trying to put his life back together
By Jason Schreiber Union Leader Correspondent
A 79-year-old Londonderry man recently acquitted in a child sexual abuse case is trying to move on and rebuild his life, according to his defense attorney.
A jury in Rockingham County found Anthony Donovan not guilty of nine counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault and two counts of prostitution that alleged he had offered a girl money in exchange for sexual acts.
“It’s going to take him a while to put his life back together. He lost his job when this happened. He lost friends. He lost relationships. Being accused of something like this takes a great deal of time to overcome,” William Korman, his Boston lawyer, said Wednesday.
Donovan was arrested early last year on charges that he had sexually assaulted a girl younger than 16 on multiple occasions beginning in 2012.
Donovan testified in his own defense during the January trial in Rockingham County Superior Court.
“Mr. Donovan maintained his innocence from the moment he was questioned by police ... and once he took the witness stand he continued to maintain his innocence. We’re over the moon that the jury believed that the state didn’t prove their case. Mr. Donovan was found not guilty because he was, in fact, not guilty,” Korman said.
But the acquittal was disappointing to Rockingham County Attorney Patricia Conway and former Deputy County Attorney Jennifer Haggar, who prosecuted the case.
“Although we certainly respect the jury and the criminal justice process, the outcome was not what we expected,” Conway said.
Conway said that, in general, child sexual assault cases are difficult to prove because “perpetrators rape their victims behind closed doors where no one else can witness the abuse.”
She said it becomes a case of the alleged perpetrator’s word against the child’s word.
Which, I admit, happens where a child will make up stories about an adult. But it usually has to do with a rebellious child wanting to get out from under the control of an authority figure like a father or step-father. Was there a reason this young woman would lie about this old man at this time in her life. If that is not apparent, then I would be inclined to believe the child. The alleged perpetrator has great motivation for lying, so, why would you believe him over her?
I think Ireland and Northern Ireland are thirty or forty years behind the rest of the developed world in their understanding of child sexual abuse and at least that far behind in justice for CSA victims.
“It is difficult for the average person to believe that another human being could be capable of harming a child in such a horrible and violent manner ... Quite frankly, it’s easier to believe that the child is dishonest or imagining the abuse,” Conway said.
She added that children who are vulnerable are often targeted and that child and adult victims generally don’t disclose the abuse right away.
“This can be difficult for the average person to understand. Victims of sexual abuse do not disclose for a number of reasons, to include the severe emotional trauma inflicted upon the victim by his/her abuser, fear of retaliation and the feelings of embarrassment and humiliation,” Conway said.
CHILD abuse cases in Spain have risen
during the state of emergency
By Dimitris Kouimtsidis The Olive Press
During the week of March 23 to March 30, the Anar Foundation received 270 requests for help, of which 173 of those correspond to cases of serious abuse.
That number amounts to 24 cases per day nationwide.
Every day that went past, even more cases were reported than the one before, with 36% of the calls on March 23 being related to serious child abuse and that number rising to 40% by March 31.
Diana Diaz, director of the Anar Foundation spoke to El Mundo and said: “The risk increases because the victim cannot move away from the aggressor.
“We cannot exactly compare these numbers with the past because this is a special circumstance, but we do see an increase in general and quantify an increase day by day.”
She also mentions the worrying statistic that 3.5% of these cases are ones of sexual abuse.
“It is a very serious problem because minors cannot escape their aggressor and because it is taking place in environments where there are no other protective adults, either because they do not know it or because they do nothing to prevent it.”
No comments:
Post a Comment