Protecting the children

[Illustration by Amy Harbert]

In 2022, electronic service providers nationwide turned in 31.8 million reports of possible online exploitation of children, including child sexual abuse material (CSAM), trafficking and enticement. Data from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) states that 21.9 million of the tips were related to child pornography. The same year, Facebook made more than 21 million CyberTipline reports, Instagram logged over 5 million and Google more than 2.1 million, according to a NCMEC report. The public made 256,504 reports to the tip line.

The national numbers and cases reported locally are in part behind Kimberly’s Center for Child Protection’s plans to expand facilities and partnerships with law enforcement. The specially trained staff at Kimberly’s Center, together with the Florida Department of Children and Families and local law enforcement, provide a safe, child-friendly environment for children to talk about their abuse and begin healing. The nonprofit has a campus at 2800 NE 14th St., Ocala.

The agency plans to add 4,900 square feet of floor space at the center for “preventive, investigative and treatment services” and law enforcement partnerships aimed at creating “additional safety nets for our children and families” and joint projects with law enforcement. 

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) and Ocala Police Department (OPD) are members of the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, part of a nationwide group of 61 task forces involving 5,230 law enforcement agencies, which was established in 1998 by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). The Gainesville Police Department is the host agency for the 38 member counties of the North Florida ICAC Task Force.

“This ICAC initiative that directly partners Kimberly’s Center with local law enforcement will provide increased training and awareness to parents and youth to assist in not just intervention strategies, but also prevention,” said Dawn Westgate, Kimberly’s Center executive director.

A press release from the center stated that funds from the 2023 Give4Marion fundraising campaign, which took place Sept. 19 and 20, would go toward “training and support for law enforcement, DCF and caregivers; education and community awareness activities; victim-related services such as trauma counseling and safety planning; increase technology capacity to assist in sexual abuse cases with technology-facilitated overlay.”

“Child sexual abuse has long-lasting implications for its victims,’’ Westgate said. “Sexual abuse survivors deal with a host of short- and long-term consequences, making mental health treatment critical in the aftermath of the investigation. What we see with our child sexual abuse survivors who are also victims of CSAM is that their journey to healing is further complicated by the knowledge that the images of their victimization have often been distributed. This element often compounds their trauma.”

Local and national data

The ICAC task force has reviewed some 7 million reports of online child exploitation, resulting in more than 134,000 arrests, according to the OJJDP.  

The MCSO provided the following data from the ICAC Initiative Commander for combined MCSO and OPD Cyber Tips and related arrests:

• In 2020, there were 199 Cyber Tips; eight resulted in arrests by MCSO.

• In 2021, there were 469 Cyber Tips; seven resulted in arrests by MCSO.

• In 2022, there were 656 Cyber Tips; six resulted in arrests by MCSO or OPD.

• In 2023, MCSO had received 403 Cyber Tips at the time of the report; 43 of those had been investigated and four resulted in an arrest by MCSO or OPD, with the remaining 360 tips still under investigation.

On Feb. 23, the MCSO arrested a 72-year-old Summerfield man on 25 counts of possessing 10 or more images of child pornography, or CSAM, that was obtained through the internet. The arresting investigator, Major Crimes Unit Cpl. Chase King, determined the defendant had printed out more than 220,000 images—or about 2,600 pounds—of child pornography material, according to the arrest document.

Another local CSAM case handled by King involved a 47-year-old Silver Springs man arrested on Oct. 4 and charged with 20 counts of possessing 10 or more images of child pornography depicting scenes of sex acts involving prepubescent and toddler-aged females and adults, according to the arrest document. 

The case was originally referred to MCSO by a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations, who had placed an “undercover ad” on social media looking for a “teacher for an inexperienced” young girl. The Silver Springs man responded to the ad, offered sexually oriented education for a “13-year-old girl,” and asked questions aimed at “grooming the fictitious female to be sexually abused by the caregiver,” the arrest document indicates. 

Legal steps were taken to locate the electronic service provider and internet service provider user and King obtained a search warrant for the defendant’s home, where a laptop and Nokia 8 cellphone were found, which contained a “large collection” of CSAM, the arrest document states. The man admitted he was the “owner and sole user” of the two electronic devices but denied “possessing or viewing” the child pornography material, according to the arrest documents. He was arrested and jailed in lieu of $100,000 bail.

An Oct. 18 OPD press release announced the arrest earlier in the month of a 27-year-old federal corrections officer for “possessing child pornography.” It noted that a detective initiated an investigation after receiving a Cyber Tip from the NCMEC that an online account contained media files with child sexual abuse material. 

A U.S. Department of Justice paper on Cyber Tips and prosecution, also provided by the MCSO, states that electronic service providers are required to generate a Cyber Tip when an “apparent case” of CSAM has taken place. The paper states the number of Cyber Tips rose from 76,603 in 2016 to 340,342 in 2021 and notes the resources and complexity involved in investigation and prosecution. 

The extensive report discusses the importance of using a certified child forensic interviewer in speaking with a victim and the challenges of gathering evidence from sources abroad. The paper covers trial and post-conviction issues and describes the Amy, Vicky and Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act of 2018, which is tied to restitution for victims of CSAM. 

Ongoing monitoring

Jeff Walczak, OPD’s public information officer, said his department has two detectives dedicated to ICAC cases.

“The ICAC Unit receives cyber tips from different digital platforms on a daily basis. These tips undergo thorough investigation using various techniques to determine whether there is any criminal activity taking place within our jurisdiction. If a criminal violation has been established, further investigation is conducted to determine the location and the identity of the individuals involved,” he wrote. 

“Furthermore, the ICAC unit conducts undercover chat operations on various social media platforms to identify individuals who are actively seeking communication with children to solicit sexual activity,” Walczak added. 

“At times, our detectives get calls from School Resource Officers in schools about troubling content found on students’ phones and we view these situations as valuable opportunities to engage with parents and children and provide education. Additionally, during investigations, we offer advice to parents and connect them with the ICAC task force website for more resources to foster open family communication and safer online experiences. We have also shared ICAC task force information and tips on our Facebook page,” he noted.

Kevin Christian, director of public relations for Marion County Public Schools, stated that the organization “limits access to the internet with devices connected to our network; we cannot control what students access on their own devices on their own time.”

“We offer cyber security training and on-going education to our students, parents, and families to protect themselves through guest presenters, computer specialists, and classroom conversations. We encourage families to regularly discuss online safety and for parents to monitor their children’s digital footprints, including social media,” he wrote.

Westgate said education and awareness “are the best defenses against internet crimes against children” and that the enhanced “collaboration seeks to provide our community with these tools.” 

“This group of programs support the victims and strengthens the criminal cases to support and protect children and teens in our community,” she stated.

To learn more about Kimberly’s Center for Child Protection, go to kimberlyscenter.org

Access the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children Cyber Tip line at report.cybertip.org or the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at childhelphotline.org