A man will face Penrith Local Court next month, charged by detectives after a covert online investigation into child exploitation.
Strike Force Trawler is an ongoing Child Exploitation Internet Unit (CEIU) investigation into the sexual abuse and exploitation of children facilitated through the internet and related telecommunications devices.
In June this year, Strike Force officers began engaging online with a man from Sydney’s west.
“Police will allege in court the man believed he was speaking to the mother of an 11-year-old girl and that he made numerous sexually explicit comments regarding the child,” a police spokesperson said.
At about 4pm on Wednesday, November 9, the man was arrested at a St Clair home and taken to Penrith Police Station.
A search warrant was also executed at the home, during which police seized several electronic devices.
The man was later charged with ‘using a carriage service for the purpose of child pornography’.
He was granted strict conditional bail and is due to appear before Penrith Local Court on Monday, December 12.
Regular covert online investigations are conducted by the Child Exploitation Internet Unit and police in NSW work closely with their law-enforcement colleagues interstate and overseas.
Anyone with information about internet predators is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
