Internet paedophile sex crimes increasing 11/09/2006 00:00

11 September 2006

BRUSSELS — The Federal Computer Crime Unit (FCCU) recorded 1,174 paedophile crimes on the internet last year, 44 percent more than in 2004, Interior Minister Patrick Dewael said.

The Liberal VLD minister also said the number of confirmed crimes was double the amount recorded four years ago.

Suspicious activities on the internet can be reported to a central judicial reporting point, located online at www.gpj.be. The reporting office then passes the information onto the FCCU.

There were some 27,325 alleged internet crimes reported to authorities last year, news agency Belga reported on Monday. But an increasing number of reports involved crimes of paedophilia.

Child protection group ChildFocus informed police of 3,739 alleged crimes compared with 2,112 in 2004.

Liberal VLD Senator Stefaan Noreilde — who requested the figures from Minister Dewael — said these cases would have involved child pornography or abuse.

But despite the increase in the number of confirmed crimes, that number of crimes committed that Belgium has the legal jurisdiction to investigate has declined.

In 2002, there were 69 such cases compared with 30 last year.

Senator Noreilde said the figures indicate that the spread of child pornography via the internet primarily originates from abroad.

[Copyright Expatica News 2006]

Subject: Belgian news