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Implementation
of these investigations, it uses a variety of judicial information sources and images, as well as information
from regional police forces and investigative authorities in other countries. 260
d. Many reports are sent in by the Police Cyber Crime Reporting Website and these give rise to several
dozen investigations annually, see also §3.3.3.2. 261
e. Investigations are passed directly to regional sexual offences divisions by means of official reports. 262
These investigations may, for example, be the result of a report of sexual abuse, in which it emerged
from a video-recorded interview that the perpetrator recorded the sexual abuse. Computer repair
companies that discover child abuse images on a computer also call in the police. These investigations
of child abuse material should also be reported to the TBI, but this is not always the case. 263
The TBI makes an initial assessment and takes account of the extent to which the case involves an organisation
(the presence of a network), the potential magnitude of the case, whether or not the images
were produced recently and the suspect’s online environment. A coordinator from the <strong>National</strong> <strong>Child</strong>
<strong>Pornography</strong> Database assesses whether a case does indeed involve child abuse material. If the images
are old, it is quite likely that the sexual offence (the sexual abuse) may have become barred by limitation.
In such a case, there is little point in launching a criminal investigation into abuse. If images
have been produced recently, however, the investigation is given priority, as in such a case it is likely
that the victim is still being abused. On the basis of the findings, the coordinator draws up what are
known as official assessment reports, which contain details of the subject matter of the material, the
identification of victims, a statement as to whether the images fulfil the criteria in order to constitute
a violation of Article 240b of the Dutch Criminal Code, and a determination as to whether the images
are known in the <strong>National</strong> <strong>Child</strong> <strong>Pornography</strong> Database. 264 The Internet identities and any credit card
numbers are recorded. These details make it possible to ascertain whether the individuals concerned
have distributed or downloaded child abuse material. A demand for information is then used to derive
name and address details from the Internet identity or the credit card number. These details enable a
suspect to be identified, and an official report of this criminal investigation is produced. 265 The images
involved are also secured. 266 The report of the technical investigation and the official report pertaining
260 Every year, these sources give rise to hundreds of investigations by the Dutch police (regional and
supra-regional) and several thousand investigations in other countries that are transferred to the police
services responsible in other countries via Interpol and Europol. See Implementation Provisions concerning
child pornography (Article 240b of the Dutch Criminal Code), 2010A025, Dutch Government
Gazette, 2 December 2011, no.19121.
261 <strong>National</strong> <strong>Child</strong> <strong>Pornography</strong> Expertise Centre, Public Prosecution Service and Police, 2010 (not publicly
available).
262 <strong>National</strong> <strong>Child</strong> <strong>Pornography</strong> Expertise Centre, Public Prosecution Service and Police, 2010 (not publicly
available).
263 The Implementation Provisions concerning child pornography state that investigations for information
must be submitted to the mainstream (regional) steering and evaluation team within the police
force’s jurisdiction.
264 Van der Zee & Groeneveld, 2007.
265 In many cases, a subscription holder was identified who was later found not to be the suspect. Information
supplied in writing by TBI, 5 September 2011.
266 <strong>National</strong> <strong>Child</strong> <strong>Pornography</strong> Expertise Centre, Public Prosecution Service and Police, 2010 (not publicly
available).
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