Suspected Pedophile Digitally Unmasked

[usatrader]

http://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2...hile_071008.jpg

CTV.ca News Staff

A suspected pedophile who apparently believed his computer-altered photos would keep him safe from authorities was digitally unmasked Monday.

Interpol unscrambled images of the suspect -- who had used standard Adobe Photoshop software to create a swirl over his face -- and released them to media outlets worldwide. Police say the man has been going around the world preying on young boys.

They say the suspect would then post the images on the Internet after digitally altering his face. Police have about 200 photos of the man with a dozen boys posted on the internet in 2004, but likely taken in 2002 and 2003.

Interpol believes the photos were taken in Cambodia and Vietnam. They've identified at least one of the hotels where the photos may have been taken, but a search of the hotel logs did not give them information about the suspect.

Police would not reveal how they reconstructed the suspect's face from the original images. But they said that there was a heated debate about releasing the photos.

Anders Persson, a Swedish officer working with Interpol, told The Associated Press that the photos let criminals know that it is possible to identify them through Web postings. This could hamper police in future investigations because child abusers can alter their techniques making it more difficult to identify them.

Police were also concerned that releasing the re-altered photos would humiliate the man and, perhaps, even lead vigilantes to go after him.

Persson, who was against releasing the photos to the media, says preventing further abuse was the paramount concern of police.

"It was a long discussion," Persson told AP. "We can't just sit here and do nothing. We have exhausted all possibilities within police work to find this man ... This was the last step."

At first, Interpol sent the photos of the man to police around the world, but when that failed, police said they had no other choice.

"For years, images of this man sexually abusing children have been circulating on the Internet. We have tried all other means to identify and to bring him to justice, but we are now convinced that without the public's help, this sexual predator could continue to rape and sexually abuse young children," Interpol's secretary general, Ronald K. Noble, said in a statement reported by the AP.

Interpol is asking anyone who may have information about the man to contact local police. They also asked the public not to take direct action.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/stor...71008?hub=World

That is all!!

[londonthai]

there is a recent, and very good quality, picture of this guy passing through the airport emmigration. Despite of his picture being known all over the thai newspapers nobody recognised him

[cdnvic]

That's like seven threads on it, three on this page alone.

[the scouser]

This is already a thread on this.

See here

In line with TV policy on matters of paedophilia, this thread is closed.

Scouse.