AFP releases chilling images in hopes of catching child abusers

Child sexual abuse investigators have released a chilling set of images of rooms where they believe horrors occurred in the hopes of catching perpetrators.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) released four non-confrontational images to the public on Monday in the hope that someone may come forward with information to close cold cases being investigated by the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE).

The images include a fireplace, a bed frame with a built-in radio, and two images from the same scene with a blue brick wall pattern and yellow curtains.

Connected to historic cases likely involving child victims who are now adults, AFP Acting Assistant Commissioner Helen Schneider said the organisation was “determined to identify these victims”.

“Victim identification specialists have the painstaking task of going through images and videos frame-by-frame to identify anything that helps with the origin, location or the identity of a victim,” she said.

“Your leads can make or break an investigation and every tip could make all the difference for a vulnerable victim.”

Ms Schneider said “the slightest piece of information” could lead to a break in the case, calling on those who would have had access to inside the homes to come forward if they recognised these images.

“I‘m particularly specifically looking for assistance from those individuals who might work in fields where you might have greater exposure to housing locations like real estate agents, tradespersons, builders, people who might be able to recognise the specific features in these photographs,” she said.

The release of these four images comes after the investigative technique led to police charging a 45-year-old Gold Coast man with 1600 offences after he allegedly raped, abused and filmed 91 girls in childcare centres for 15 years.

Believed to be one of Australia’s worst child sex offenders, the man allegedly committed offences in 10 centre in Brisbane, one in NSW and another overseas.

Police released background images connected to child abuse material found on the dark web in 2014, tracing objects seen in the videos to a Brisbane childcare centre in 2022.

When making inquiries with the centre, police were allegedly led to the Gold Coast man, leading to the litany of charges against him.