A Dunedin man has been sentenced in the Dunedin District Court on 26 June 2019 to ten months home detention for possession of child sex abuse and exploitation images.

Conan George Brownie, 37, from Mosgiel, Dunedin was charged with three representative charges of possessing objectionable images. Brownie would often download and view and/or store the images, and then delete them within a short period of time.

An online storage platform reported Brownie’s activity to the United States National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, who referred the reports to the Department of Internal Affairs. Inspectors of Publications from the Department conducted search warrants at the defendant’s home and parents’ address, and seized a number of devices for examination, which lead to the discovery of the criminal activity.

Tim Houston, Acting Manager, Censorship Compliance Unit at the Department, says: “The Department is committed to working with authorities across the world to help identify criminals who are accessing objectionable images online in New Zealand.”

“Our investigators are focused in their efforts to remove child sex abuse images from the internet and are dedicated to the identification and rescue of victims.

“If you search, download, or view any objectionable publications, you can expect to be caught.”

If you are concerned that something you have seen may be objectionable or want to report a crime, contact the Censorship team.

If you are the victim of a child abuse crime, visit the Child Abuse: Directory for information and support or Safe to Talk.

If you are concerned about your or someone else’s sexual behaviour, contact organisations such as Safe Network, WellStop and STOP, local treatment providers, or specialist therapists.

The Department of Internal Affairs uses the term child sexual abuse imagery. The term child pornography downplays child sexual abuse.

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