A 40-year-old man from Stony Plain, Alberta, has been charged as part of a sweeping international investigation led by the Norwegian National Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS) into child sexual abuse material distributed on the dark web.
Global operation leads to 28 arrests
The Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team (ALERT) announced Wednesday that its Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit arrested the suspect at his home on May 27. He is one of 28 individuals charged across 14 countries in what Norway has dubbed Operation Torch.
According to ALERT, the investigation focused on dark web forums where users paid for access to child sexual abuse material using cryptocurrency. The suspect allegedly used cryptocurrency to gain entry to these illicit services.
Coordinated law enforcement action
Norwegian NCIS revealed the global scope of the operation on July 8, confirming that suspects have been identified and arrested in Canada, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Czechia, Germany, Denmark, the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, and Sweden.
“We have collaborated closely with law enforcement services in 13 other countries in order to coordinate the arrests of the identified users of the forums using this cryptocurrency as the required method of payment,” said Police Prosecutor Terje Michelsen of the Norwegian NCIS in a statement.
Charges and court proceedings
The Stony Plain man, identified as Rocco Caterina, faces charges of possessing child sexual abuse and exploitation materials. He has been released from custody and is scheduled to appear in court on July 15.
ALERT urged anyone with information about this case or similar offences to contact local police or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
Background on ALERT
ALERT is a provincial law enforcement collaboration established and funded by the Alberta Government, dedicated to combating serious and organized crime. The ICE unit specializes in investigating online child exploitation.
Operation Torch remains ongoing, with authorities continuing to coordinate efforts to identify and prosecute additional suspects involved in the dark web network.
