2008 Annual Report - Queensland Police Service - Queensland ...

Key priority area—Personal safety
Child safety
To reduce investigator exposure to child exploitation
material and improve opportunities for victim
identification, the QPS initiated the establishment of
an Australian National Victim Image Library (ANVIL).
Research and testing are underway to develop and
implement practical solutions to aid in the identification
of child victims and offenders.
Task Force Argos continues to identify, initiate and
maintain products that educate the community and
reduce the risk posed to children by the internet and
related technologies. Some of the ongoing Argos
generated internet safety initiatives include the ‘Who’s
chatting to your kids?’ brochure and the ‘Surf Safely’
campaign which was awarded the 2007 Child Protection
Week Education Award.
Web pages on these initiatives can be viewed at:
www.police.qld.gov.au/programs/personalSafety/
The QPS has maintained its position nationally as
the lead law enforcement agency in the investigation
of the sexual abuse and exploitation of our children.
Investigators from State Crime Operations Command,
Task Force Argos, have facilitated training across the
world.
Through its strategic alliances with child protection
and law enforcement agencies worldwide, Task Force
Argos investigators infiltrated and dismantled a highly
secretive, sophisticated and organised network of
international child sex offenders. Operation Achilles
commenced in early 2006, and was finalised in
February 2008 with the simultaneous execution of
warrants across the world, resulting in the arrest of
offenders in Australia, the United States, Germany and
the United Kingdom.
The successful completion of Operation Achilles and
its associated sub-operations resulted in the removal of
more than 40 children from sexually abusive situations;
the arrest of 22 Achilles network members globally; the
closure of 4 commercial child exploitation websites;
and the arrest of more than 120 people for the purchase
of child exploitation material, including 9 people in
Queensland.
In 2007-08 the Cold Case and Serial Sex Crime Team
within the Child and Sexual Assault Investigation Unit
implemented the statewide ‘Unreported Sexual Assault
Project’ (Project USA) in partnership with sexual assault
support services. The project gives survivors of sexual
assault reporting options other than a formal complaint
to police. The Cold Case Team has also established
a website at: www.police.qld.gov.au/programs/
crimePrevention/Project_USA.htm
This operation is recognised as a benchmark in
online covert operations, and featured as a key note
presentation at the Interpol Child Exploitation meeting
in Sydney in June 2008.
Output 2: Crime Management
With honour we serve 31