It all started with a photo sent by a 43 year-old American to an individual he believed was a fellow criminal.
The recipient of the photo was an undercover Federal Law Enforcement official.
The photo depicted a one and a half year-old boy who was wearing an orange sweater and was holding a toy stuffed rabbit. The photo was sent to Interpol, and that's when the good cop work began.
The ring stretched across the pond to Europe and back here.
Note that this is what we want when we talk about aggressive Law Enforcement at both National and International levels.
Bolding is added.
"The case began to unfold when Robert Diduca, a Sheraton hotel manager from Massachusetts, sent the photo of the Dutch boy to an undercover federal agent in Boston. Diduca, a married father of three who used the screen name "Babytodd," thought he was sending the picture to another man with a sexual interest in babies and toddlers.
Agents forwarded the photo to Interpol, the international police organization, and to several other countries.
An investigator for the Dutch police recognized the stuffed bunny as Miffy, a familiar character in a series of Dutch children's books. She also traced the boy's orange sweater to a small Amsterdam store that had sold only 20 others like it.
The boy's photo was broadcast on a national TV program similar to "America's Most Wanted." Within minutes, friends and relatives called the child's mother.
Robert Mikelsons, a 27-year-old day care worker who baby-sat the boy, was arrested. On his computer were thousands and thousands of images of children being molested and raped, including the boy holding the stuffed bunny."
Then, the floodgates opened-
"Photos and online chats found on computers owned by Diduca and Mikelsons led to more than three dozen other suspects in seven countries, including Canada, Britain, Germany, Sweden and Mexico. The oldest victim in the Netherlands was 4, the youngest just 19 days old.
Diduca pleaded guilty to child porn and sexual exploitation charges and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
Mikelsons also received an 18-year sentence, followed by indefinite psychiatric commitment, after confessing to sexually abusing more than 80 children. [18 years for 80 kids]
The horror did not let up after the Mikelsons case.
In May, authorities arrested Michael Arnett of Kansas after finding pornographic photos he allegedly produced. Agents discovered the pictures when they searched the computer of a Wisconsin man who had been chatting online with Mikelsons."
Warning- If you thought that the above was horrific enough, you'd better think twice before reading on....
"What they found on Arnett's computer was unlike anything some of the investigators had ever come across: long, graphic, online chats about his desire to abduct, kill and eat children. They said he had also made photos of a naked 2-year-old boy in a roasting pan inside his oven. The child and two other boys Arnett allegedly abused and photographed were later identified and found alive.
In July, authorities arrested four men they say had online discussions with Arnett about kidnapping and eating children. Those arrested included Ronald Brown, a children's puppeteer from Florida."
My head literally spins when reading this part. As eating children on any old day was not special enough for them, the criminals mentioned the day of Easter, the day that marks the Resurrection of the Christian Savior and the consequent breaking of Satan's hold on humanity, as the perfect occasion for such an event.
"In excerpts of an online chat between Arnett and Brown from 2011, the two men appear to be discussing their desire to cook a child for Easter.
"he would make a fine Easter feast," Arnett says.
"yes, his thighs and butt cheeks would be fantastic for Easter," Brown responds."
More examples of cops wading through gut-wrenching photos to nail the criminals-
"To find the young victims, investigators carefully studied thousands of photos, read hours of Internet chats and worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. They also employed some forensic wizardry.
After finding a video on Diduca's computer of a bound, 2-year-old boy being raped, investigators enhanced the images of furniture and carpet and determined the attack took place in a motel room in Bakersfield, California.
Then they pinpointed the date by way of a TV that was playing in the background in the video, figuring out exactly when a particular episode of "Family Matters" aired along with a certain Pepperidge Farms commercial.
A man from Colorado was arrested and is awaiting trial.
Similarly, in the Arnett case, investigators discovered that a water bottle in one of the photographs carried the name of a swim and scuba center in Kansas. With the help of teachers at an elementary school, they identified three children shown in the photographs, including the toddler posed in the roasting pan.
The mother of one of the boys said she initially did not believe the allegations against Arnett, a family friend for about 15 years. She said her son, now 7, and several nephews often spent weekends at Arnett's home four or five years ago.
"Well, when we first got the phone call, we thought there's no way. You guys got the wrong guy," she said. The Associated Press does not identify victims of sexual abuse or their families.
But then investigators showed her photos Arnett had allegedly taken of her son with a shirt and no pants."
Possible photos of dead kids-
"Last week, they arrested another Massachusetts man after finding child pornography and photos of what appeared to be dead children on his computer. He allegedly had online chats with Arnett and Brown.
In July, authorities arrested four men they say had online discussions with Arnett about kidnapping and eating children. Those arrested included Ronald Brown, a children's puppeteer from Florida."
My head literally spins when reading this part. As eating children on any old day was not special enough for them, the criminals mentioned the day of Easter, the day that marks the Resurrection of the Christian Savior and the consequent breaking of Satan's hold on humanity, as the perfect occasion for such an event.
"In excerpts of an online chat between Arnett and Brown from 2011, the two men appear to be discussing their desire to cook a child for Easter.
"he would make a fine Easter feast," Arnett says.
"yes, his thighs and butt cheeks would be fantastic for Easter," Brown responds."
More examples of cops wading through gut-wrenching photos to nail the criminals-
"To find the young victims, investigators carefully studied thousands of photos, read hours of Internet chats and worked with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. They also employed some forensic wizardry.
After finding a video on Diduca's computer of a bound, 2-year-old boy being raped, investigators enhanced the images of furniture and carpet and determined the attack took place in a motel room in Bakersfield, California.
Then they pinpointed the date by way of a TV that was playing in the background in the video, figuring out exactly when a particular episode of "Family Matters" aired along with a certain Pepperidge Farms commercial.
A man from Colorado was arrested and is awaiting trial.
Similarly, in the Arnett case, investigators discovered that a water bottle in one of the photographs carried the name of a swim and scuba center in Kansas. With the help of teachers at an elementary school, they identified three children shown in the photographs, including the toddler posed in the roasting pan.
The mother of one of the boys said she initially did not believe the allegations against Arnett, a family friend for about 15 years. She said her son, now 7, and several nephews often spent weekends at Arnett's home four or five years ago.
"Well, when we first got the phone call, we thought there's no way. You guys got the wrong guy," she said. The Associated Press does not identify victims of sexual abuse or their families.
But then investigators showed her photos Arnett had allegedly taken of her son with a shirt and no pants."
Possible photos of dead kids-
"Last week, they arrested another Massachusetts man after finding child pornography and photos of what appeared to be dead children on his computer. He allegedly had online chats with Arnett and Brown.
More arrests are expected.
The lack of empathy of these criminals for the feelings of victims in simply unbelievable
In the years prior to my retirement from Law Enforcement, I would often get comments from non-cops about having to deal with criminals such as "I don't know how you do it, I wouldn't be able to be around those guys without killing them." Other similar statements were quite commonplace.
My response was to hold my tongue and refrain from the obvious "No, you wouldn't". Most of these guys had never even fired a gun let alone owned one, and one who has never contemplated having to shoot someone is extremely unlikely to go after a criminal with a knife or a blunt object. People from hunting and herding cultures are far more likely to attack one of these individuals than are average Americans who have been told that being manly is all about bedding as many girls as possible and standing up for every "social issue" except those which concern their beliefs and culture.
These cops who swallowed the anguish that they undoubtedly felt while viewing and contemplating the photos, and then searched the photos for necessary details, are some of the most hardened men and women I can imagine. If society ever were to collapse, it is they who will continue to go about eliminating the most vicious of our criminals from the community.
I firmly believe that one of the greatest drawbacks to our society of Law and Order (Note that I truly appreciate our society) is the lack of fear that criminals have of retribution being exacted upon them by concerned members of the community, especially those who are close to the victims. Criminals like these have always existed, and yes, the Internet has made it easier for them to find each other and encourage others to engage in crimes, but I assert that far fewer of those who may feel inclined to commit such crimes would do so if they feared the reactions of family members and other concerned citizens.
If 18-year prison sentences for scores of victims continue, it is probable that people will seek to make others fearful of such retribution.
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