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SALT LAKE CITY — A crackdown on suspected child pornographers touted as the largest in the state's history resulted in 39 arrests, 124 computers seized and a stack of images that, if printed, would stretch 1,909 miles high, authorities said Thursday.
“If a person spent eight hours a day in chunks of 15 seconds downloading and viewing each image seized during this operation, the person would be viewing child pornography nonstop for 55 years,” -Ken Wallentine, AG law enforcement director.
“If a person spent eight hours a day in chunks of 15 seconds downloading and viewing each image seized during this operation, the person would be viewing child pornography nonstop for 55 years,” said Ken Wallentine, the attorney general's law enforcement director.
"Mind blowing" is what Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff called the volume of material confiscated in the month-long investigation known as Operation FrostyLime Squeeze.
The Utah Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force led the cyber investigation with help from 37 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The operation received its name from the computer file sharing programs FrostWire and LimeWire, which many many pornographers use to send images to each other.
"Sex offenders tend to hang out with other sex offenders," said Capt. Jessica Farnsworth, task force commander.
Young people also use those software programs, often to share music. But with so many computer and cell phone predators on the prowl, authorities cautioned parents to beware of what else they might be receiving or sending.
"It's a sobering thought to think every child out there is a target," said Ken Porter, FBI assistant agent-in-charge in Salt Lake City.
In addition to the 39 men arrested -- including four juveniles -- law enforcers notified 114 others they are under investigation. Police also seized 118 external hard drives, 31 cell phones, five Xbox consoles and more than 1,000 CDs and DVDs.
Those arrested include businessmen, teachers, construction workers, doctors and those in positions of trust, Farnsworth said. Not only did they look at child pornography, she said, but some photographed children, arranged meetings and molested them.
"We are the light that exposes what hides in the darkness. What we find hiding in the darkness are sexual predators exploiting our children," she said.
Victims range in age from infants to preteens, Farnsworth said.
Donations from Operation Kids allowed police agencies in 18 counties to devote investigators to their backlogs of child pornography cases from Feb. 28 to March 31.
Layton Police Chief Terry Keefe said without the task force, local agencies don't have the resources to pursue those cases, the number of which he called "truly mind-boggling."
Though officials deemed the operation a success, they realize they are only scratching the surface.
"We had a busy month, but none of us believe our job is done," Farnsworth said. "We cannot diminish our efforts to stay ahead of those we seek to expose."
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Story written by Dennis Romboy with contributions from Sarah Dallof.
