Child porn: More arrests?
2003-09-19 21:15
Cape Town - E-mails of child pornography sent and received on a computer seized at a Grassy Park schoolteacher's house will be traced and other people involved in the scandal could also be taken into custody, said superintendent Neville Malila, the provincial police spokesperson.
The child porn scandal erupted in Grassy Park in Cape Town on Thursday when a schoolteacher was arrested for being in possession of the largest collection of child pornography ever found in the Western Cape.
Police officers from the child protection unit and the information unit arrested the 55-year-old teacher from Grassy Park High School on Thursday at his Plumstead house.
According to Malila, the information unit put the teacher under surveillance two weeks ago after receiving a tip-off.
"Police first had to determine the extent of his activities. When it became clear that children could be in danger, the investigative team got a warrant and arrested the suspect at his home."
Malila said a search uncovered a wide variety of child porn. "There were video cassettes, photos and digital images," he said.
Although he was not able to say exactly how many photos and videos were found, he did say it was the biggest collection of child pornography ever seized in the Western Cape.
Malila said the majority of the pornography was of young boys between the ages of nine and 15. He said "police are trying to identify the children. It is not yet clear whether any of the children involved were pupils at the school where he taught".
He said members of the technical support unit were also inspecting computer and camera equipment that was seized at the house.
Police are also apparently investigating claims that the man was arrested in 1995 on charges of sodomising an eight-year-old boy.
Shock
Fingerprints have been taken and sent to Pretoria but the allegation has not yet been confirmed.
Clive Stadler, the principal of Grassy Park High School, was not available for comment on Friday.
Western Cape Minister of Education Andre Gaum said the news of the discovery came as a shock.
"The safety of our children is so important that even an allegation of this nature must be taken seriously," he said.
"Our director of labour relations has already given our local district office orders to investigate the allegations. We will also co-operate fully with police in their investigation," Gaum said.
The suspect is still in custody and will appear in the Wynberg magistrate's court on Monday on charges of illegally possessing, collecting and distributing child pornography.