The Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Queensland Police Service (QPS) have joined forces in a campaign to combat the sexual exploitation of children in the Sunshine State.
A new Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team (JACET) was launched in Cairns to coincide with this week’s National Child Protection Week which runs until Saturday (12 September).
AFP Detective Superintendent Paula Hudson said the new team was a major boost for law enforcement Agencies working tirelessly to protect Australian children.
“We know in order to successfully identify, investigate and prosecute child sex offenders we must work together,” Detective Superintendent Hudson said.
“The establishment of the new JACET in Cairns means both Agencies have a greater coordinated investigative response in order to achieve the best possible outcomes for children across the entire State.”
Detective Superintendent Hudson said the AFP and State and Territory JACETs were working towards the goal of preventing and stamping out the sexual exploitation of children, complementing the efforts of the AFP-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE).
“The success we’ve seen with the JACET model is due to having AFP officers in the same location as State and Territory Police Sex Crime Commands, or units, and operating on information provided by the ACCCE,” she said.
“It allows our committed investigators to work side-by-side to undertake joint investigations, and quickly share intelligence specific to their jurisdiction.”
Queensland’s Acting Chief Superintendent Chris Hodgman said the QPS valued the partnership which would strengthen investigative intelligence into preventing the creation, possession and distribution of child abuse material.
“QPS is committed to this partnership to ensure child sex offenders are held to account,” Chief Superintendent Hodgman said.
