Filipino accused of filming sex abuse of children arrested
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Officials announced on Thursday the capture of a Filipino man accused of filming children being sexually abused by an adult then selling videos of the attacks online in a crime that made him one of Europe's most-wanted child-abuse offenders.
Officials said in a news conference in Manila that Nelson Torayno was arrested in April in central Cebu city with thousands of images and videos of children being sexually abused by an adult. The arrest was only disclosed Thursday to allow further investigations, and officials said eight children have been rescued and returned to their families.
Australian police, the U.K. National Crime Agency and a nongovernment group, the International Justice Mission, backed Philippine efforts to track down and arrest the 32-year-old Torayno, who is now facing charges, according to a joint statement.
Torayno was one of Europol's top suspects "due to his notoriety and proliferation in producing horrendous child exploitation material and posting that in dark web chat rooms where it was circulated amongst pedophile rings," Australian Federal Police liaison officer Graeme Marshall said, referring to the European Union's law enforcement agency .
Janet Francisco, who heads the Anti-Human Trafficking Division of Manila's National Bureau of Investigation said Torayno's arrest underscored how international collaboration works to snare such an offender.
"Certainly, there are others like him out there waiting for the opportunity to prey on helpless children but one thing is more certain, that we are likewise waiting for the opportunity to get them," Francisco said.
