Global Network of 87,000 Pedophiles Dismantled – U.S. Media Remains Silent

The discovery of a vast child pornography network run by pedophiles in the Darknet—a hidden section of the internet that is not visible to traditional search engines—shocked the world once more. Recently, this network, called “Elysium,” which had an astounding 87,000 members, was dismantled by German police.

Elysium provided a forum for the sharing of pictures and videos showing the sexual and physical abuse of toddlers. The website had been up and running since the end of 2016, using the Darknet’s anonymity to conceal its horrible operations from search engine algorithms and law enforcement.

Investigators found that Elysium had been in operation since 2016 and was only available via the darknet, according to Deutsche Welle, a well-known German international broadcaster. It takes specialized encrypting software to access this hidden corner of the internet, which is inaccessible through standard search engines like Google.

Evidence of extremely serious child abuse cases, including violence against children and the exploitation of the youngest victims, was discovered by Frankfurt, Germany authorities. Additionally, Elysium was used to set up appointments in order to continue abusing and exploiting defenseless children.

Most of the suspects in the Elysium network were captured in Austria and Germany. According to reports, Dutch authorities also participated in the investigation, though it is unclear how much of a role they played.

Surprisingly, the Elysium network is not the biggest child pornography bust ever, even with its substantial membership. In a prior case, the leader of the Playpen darknet platform, 58-year-old American Steven Chase, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison after the platform was seized. Notably, in 2015, the US Department of Justice acknowledged that the FBI ran the Playpen website for a short time.

The Department of Justice’s decision to drop an indictment against the child pornography website, Playpen, caused a great deal of controversy. According to Wired, the FBI’s refusal to reveal specifics of their hacking methods used on the Tor anonymity network was the reason for the dismissal rather than a lack of evidence. Many were alarmed by this decision because, according to the EFF, it protected covert law enforcement techniques while granting freedom to an accused child pornographer.

The suspected platform operator, a 39-year-old man from the central German state of Hesse, returned to the Elysium network and was arrested on June 12 following a search of his home and the confiscation of the server. According to the police, a number of other suspects were also taken into custody during the investigation.

Authorities in Germany and Austria have stated that they will discuss the case in more detail at a press conference on Friday. This most recent incident is a terrifying reminder of the serious problem of child pornography, a worldwide epidemic that goes mostly unnoticed and causes unspeakable suffering for innocent people.