The man on top of Europe’s list of online child sex offenders has been arrested by authorities in Cebu, non-governmental organization International Justice Mission (IJM) announced yesterday.
In a joint press release with the Philippine Internet Crimes Against Children Center (PICACC), they identified the suspect as Nelson Siacor Torayno, 32 years old, as The European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation’s (Europol) most wanted.
He was arrested by the Philippine National Police’s Women and Children Protection Center (PNP-WCPC) and the National Bureau of Investigation’s Anti-Human Trafficking Division for online sexual exploitation of children on April 12 in an apartment he rented in Cebu City.
The police told Sun Star that the suspect was allegedly the source of most of the child sexual exploitation materials in the dark web monitored by the European Union.
Torayno, a Filipino, allegedly produced and distributed child sexual exploitation materials on the dark web. Before the arrest, authorities searched his apartment located in a remote area of Barangay (Village) Luz where they found thousands of photos and videos showing children being sexually abused by an adult from his electronic data, according to reports.
His arrest was not immediately reported in April to give way to ongoing investigations.
Investigations on the suspect started when Australian authorities notified the Philippines that sensitive photos of Filipino children were spreading there, ABS-CBN News reported. According to Sun Star the referral from the Queensland Police Service (QPS) was sent to the Armed Forces of the Philippines in September. The United Kingdom National Crime Agency also reportedly helped.
According to the statement shared by the IJM-Philippines, eight if Torayno’s victims have been rescued. ABS-CBN News reported that they are aged between 3 to 6 years old and are now undergoing counseling with the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
The suspect is now detained at the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center in Cebu City and is facing charges for violation of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2009, and the Child Abuse Law, Sun Star reported.
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