Detectives from the State Crime Command’s Sex Crimes Squad have charged a man following an investigation into online grooming in Sydney.
Last month, detectives from the Sex Crime Squad’s Child Exploitation Internet Unit (CEIU) began engaging online with a man from Sydney’s North Shore area.
Police will allege in court that the man believed he was speaking with a 13-year-old teenage girl and engaged in sexually explicit conversations about acts he wished to perform on the child, and sent sexually explicit material.
Following extensive investigations, strike force detectives arrested a 36-year-old man at Balmoral about 10.30am yesterday (Wednesday 12 April 2023).
He was taken to Chatswood Police Station and charged with using a carriage service to procure a person under the age of 16 years for sexual activity.
He was refused bail to appear at Manly Local Court today (Thursday 13 April 2023), where he was formally bail refused to appear at Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday 8 June 2023.
Strike Force Trawler is an ongoing investigation by the CEIU into the sexual abuse and exploitation of children facilitated through the internet and related telecommunications devices.
Regular covert online investigations are conducted by the CEIU; and police in NSW work closely with their law-enforcement colleagues interstate and overseas.
Anyone with concerns about suspected child abuse or exploitation should call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or use the Crime Stoppers online reporting page: https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au.
Information you provide will be treated in the strictest of confidence. People should not report crime information via our Facebook and Twitter pages.
