95 arrested in 17 countries targeting child sexual abuse materials

95 arrested in 17 countries targeting child sexual abuse materials

An international effort to disrupt the production and distribution of child sexual exploitation and abuse material has led to the arrest of 95 suspects.

Seventeen countries from Latin America and Europe have participated in a series of four parallel law enforcement operations (March 2026 – September 2026), each targeting a different aspect of the dissemination and commercialization of child sexual abuse content through messaging applications and cryptocurrencies.

These platforms are increasingly used to groom children, coordinate abuse, connect offenders and receive payment for illegal content. They also enable the recirculation of abuse content, resulting in continued revictimization of children.

The INTERPOL-coordinated initiative led to the execution of 127 search warrants and the rescue of one child. The arrested suspects came from 17 different countries – approximately 89 per cent were male and 11 per cent were female.

Material seized during the investigation is expected to lead to further identifications of offenders and children at risk, as well as additional safeguarding action.

“Intelligence gathered during these operations exposes, once again, the growing role of digital platforms in the monetization of child sexual abuse. Effective cross-border cooperation between law enforcement and the private sector has never been more urgent.

“Behind every file is a child who was abused, and who is revictimized every time that image recirculates. Wherever offenders move, we have to move faster.”

Panama was one of 17 countries that participated in a series of four operations coordinated by INTERPOL.

Panama took part in the operation aimed to disrupt the production and distribution of child sexual exploitation and abuse material.

In Ecuador, arrests are made in relation to the operation targeting the dissemination and commercialization of CSAM.

As part of these operations, Colombian police safeguarded a five-year-old victim and arrested the victim’s parent, who had been producing and selling abuse material online. INTERPOL’s Child Sexual Exploitation database was key to the case breakthrough, linking a series of files depicting the same child, some dating back to when the victim was one year old.

Authorities in Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru and Spain detected the participation of adolescents in several messaging groups, both requesting and distributing child abuse material.

In Ecuador, an individual was identified as being part of a group sharing abuse content. A subsequent investigation and analysis of devices revealed more than 4,000 files and approximately 15GB of child abuse images.

Authorities in Panama reported the arrest of the administrator of a group disseminating abusive material depicting children. The group had more than 700 users.

Argentinian police reported the arrest of a suspect that was in contact with more than 260 girls from different countries. The suspect, accused of sextortion of minors, would request increasingly explicit videos and images from the victims, threatening them when they tried to refuse.

International Effort Confluencia was funded by the European Union programme EL PACCTO 2.0 and the Human Dignity Foundation through INTERPOL’s Preventing the Cycle of Harm Programme.

It was also supported by AC3 AMERIPOL and Red Elipsia, an international network of specialized investigators in technology-facilitated sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children.

Participating countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Italy, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Spain and Uruguay.