Seemingly every week, I see another suspect arrested, charged or convicted of possessing, distributing or producing child pornography. It is a filthy crime that -- thanks to the Internet -- slithers its tentacles around the world.
More proof of this web of crime came recently, when I read of a Bedford, Va., man who was sentenced to 8 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release for transporting, receiving and possessing child pornography.
That isn't so unusual. There are plenty of Minnesotans doing the same thing.
What grabbed my attention was this: When the man pleaded guilty, he admitted that he was a member of two online bulletin boards dedicated to the trading of child pornography.
This "trading" is common among purveyors of child porn. It is how many of them get their material.
It also is a way that many of them get taken down. Authorities are constantly monitoring such sites.
Investigators identified the Virginia man through "Operation Joint Hammer." That's the U.S. arm of an ongoing global enforcement operation targeting rings of child pornographers. The operation has led to the arrest of more than 60 people in the United States.
Much child pornography is produced overseas. Operation Joint Hammer got its start with evidence collected by European law enforcement and shared with U.S. counterparts.
