National sandwich shop Subway is reeling after it was revealed last week that its longtime spokesman Jared Fogle has been charged with possessing child pornography and will plead guilty to paying for sex with minors.
Unfortunately, Fogle’s case isn’t unique. Across the country — and in West Virginia — law enforcement is cracking down on child pornography and other crimes against children. Although arrests are up, law enforcement agencies and child advocates are having a hard time keeping up with advancing technology, the Gazette-Mail’s Erin Beck reported Saturday.
“There are people out there who are high-hanging fruit, I guess you would say, that know the technology. They know how to hide their identities,” State Police Sgt. James Kozik, who leads the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, told Beck. “I would say what we’re getting is the low-hanging fruit. Sometimes we may stumble upon the really tech-savvy people, but we’re probably only skimming the surface of the real problem.”
Kozik’s task force made 321 arrests for either child pornography or online solicitation of minors last year, Beck reported.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, child pornography was all but eradicated in the 1980s. Technology didn’t allow for the mass reproduction and distribution of inappropriate images like it does now.
“Unfortunately, the child pornography market exploded in the advent of the Internet and advanced digital technology,” according to the DOJ. “The Internet provides ground for individuals to create, access, and share child sexual abuse images worldwide at the click of a button.”
Chat rooms, message boards and the like often serve as a facilitator, allowing perpetrators to connect with each other as well as potential victims. And research shows many involved in child pornography often have sexually abused children as well.
Law enforcement officers and others dedicated to cracking down on child pornographers deserve credit. Not only do they spend hours each day investigating perpetrators, they also have recognized the need to become more specialized and adept at handling Internet crimes against children.
Hopefully their resources and dedication will help lead to more arrests and fewer children being exploited for perverse sexual gratification.