Police have cracked a huge international child pornography network involving some 26,500 Internet users in 166 countries, German authorities said today.
The investigation began with the seizure of computer files last year from a man in the German city of Magdeburg, which yielded data on thousands of Internet users suspected of swapping child pornography.
Officials in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt said 502 premises were searched across Germany this week in an operation codenamed Marcy. Police seized 745 computers, at least 35,500 CDs, 8,300 diskettes and 5,800 videos.
As a result, the state justice ministry said 530 German citizens had been placed under suspicion of possessing or distributing child pornography.
The ministry said investigations were being coordinated by the federal police office and Interpol.