German authorities have cracked down on one of the largest international darkweb sites used to spread child pornography.
Prosecutors shut down the site that had an incredible 400,000 users worldwide and four people have been arrested.
Three German suspects, allegedly to be the administrators of the 'Boystown' platform, have been apprehended, along with one German user, who has been accused of being one of the most prolific on the site.
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In a joint statement between prosecutors in Frankfurt and the Federal Criminal Police Office, authorities explained how they found 'images of most severe sexual abuse of toddlers' on the site.
They believe the site has been active since at least 2019, has been responsible for hosting a lot of child pornography and has been helping users upload their own sick abuse.
Prosecutor Julia Bussweiler said: "The platform had several forums and chats - the illegal pictures and videos were kept in the forums; in the chats, the members could communicate. There were several language channels to facilitate the communication."
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German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer added: "This investigative success has a clear message: Those who assault the weakest aren't safe anywhere. That's what investigators work for day and night, online and offline, globally.
"We'll do everything within our power to protect the kids from these disgusting crimes."
Australia was among the international powers who helped Germany's investigation into Boystown, along with the Netherlands, Sweden, the US and Canada.
The three German suspects who have been arrested include a 40-year-old man, 49-year-old man, and a 58-year-old man.
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The latter has been living in Paraguay and German authorities have already sought for him to be extradited from South America to Europe to answer to his alleged crimes.
Prosecutors will argue the three men were administrators of the darknet site and also disseminated advice on how to avoid detection.
A 64-year-old alleged user has also been taken into custody and has been accused of uploading more than 3,500 posts.
Europol said several other dark web chat sites used by alleged paedophiles were also shut down through their operation targeting Boystown.
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The agency added more arrests related to the site are likely and have expressed how intricate the darkweb can be for nefarious and sinister content.
"Online child offender communities on the dark web exhibit considerable resilience in response to law enforcement actions targeting them. Their reactions include resurrecting old communities, establishing new communities, and making strong efforts to organise and administer them," it said in a statement.
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