A national child pornography investigation has netted the arrest of 15 Utah residents for allegedly accessing child pornography Web sites. They join six Utahns already convicted of viewing Internet child porn and 700 individuals across the country that have been arrested as part of the investigation, the Utah Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force announced Tuesday.

Utah ICAC officials say another 55 arrests in the state are pending.

The crackdown has been dubbed "Operation Site-Key" after a California company called Site-Key that used to provide credit card services for several illegal child pornography sites. Authorities, including the Utah ICAC, track down customers by tracing the credit card numbers they used to access the illegal sites. Potential offenders' computers are then confiscated and examined for evidence of downloaded child pornography before they can be arrested.

"Every Utahn should be alarmed by the number of people viewing these disgusting Web sites," Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said in a news release.

The Attorney General's office works closely with agents from the FBI, the Salt Lake City Police Department and others on the ICAC to prevent and prosecute individuals who view child pornography.

FBI Special Agent Bob Wright said Operation Site-Key involved a number of ICAC task forces across the country who want to end child pornography.

"It really is a cancer," Wright said. "It should be aggressively investigated and prosecuted. It's a horrible thing."

Wright said he hopes the prosecution of individuals who access child pornography will deter those who may desire to get involved in the crime.

Use of child pornography Web sites within the state violates the law but also creates other problems. Individuals who view child pornography online are more likely to commit other crimes against children, said Ken Hansen, director of the Utah ICAC task force.

"We have found that a high percentage of people who view child pornography also abuse children in other ways," Hansen said.

According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Operation Site-Key began in February 2002 with the execution of a federal search warrant on the Web site for Site-Key. So far, over 23,000 individuals have been found using their credit cards to subscribe to child pornography Web sites.

Suspects nationwide include a New Jersey state superior court judge who presided over numerous child abuse cases and a Catholic priest based in the Northeast.



Copyright Brigham Young University 28 Apr 2004