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Daily News Analysis

Toronto’s image takes battering with porn arrests

Crescent International

Toronto--and by extension--Canada had a good reputation. No more. A child pornographic ring has just been busted in Toronto as well as several other countries. The pornographic company was based in Toronto. These revelations come on the heels of scandals involving Toronto Mayor Rob Ford (shown in photo) who has admitted to taking illegal drugs, and drunk driving. He refuses to resign.

Toronto, Crescent-online
November 14, 2013, 12:07 DST

As if the illegal drugs and dalliances of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford were not bad enough, the Toronto police dropped another bombshell today over the arrest of 348 people, at least 100 of them in Canada, involved in a child pornography ring.

Those arrested persons included teachers, doctors, nurses, childcare providers, priests as well as law enforcement personnel. This shocking revelation was made by the Toronto police at a press conference held at the Police Headquarters today.

The police also said nearly 400 children had been rescued in a three-year investigation into the child pornography ring that spanned 94 countries where pornographic DVDs were marketed.

At the centre of the inquiry was a Toronto-based firm, Azov Films that allegedly sold DVDs and streamed videos of naked boys in Germany, Romania and Ukraine. The police investigation spanned six continents and included the US whose Postal Inspection Service was closely involved, as well as authorities in Sweden, Spain, Australia, South Africa, Hong Kong, among others.

The company is headed by a Canadian identified as Brian Way, 42, who has been in custody since his arrest in May 2011. The Toronto Police Service Child Exploitation Section was able to determine the identities of the customers from the Azov Films website. Brian Way was arrested following an undercover operation codenamed Project Spade.

He is charged with 11 different offences including possession of, and import and export, of child pornography. The company claimed it marketed footage as “naturist”. It went out of business in 2011 following Way’s arrest.

When teachers, childcare providers and priests, among others, are involved in child pornography what protection is there for children? These shocking revelations raise serious questions about the safety and protection of children in Canada and the rest of the Western world.

The break-up of the child pornography ring and the police announcement in Toronto is likely to divert attention from Mayor Rob Ford’s scandalous behaviour. For months, he denied he had used crack cocaine. When the police announced it had a video in its possession that showed Ford smoking cocaine, the mayor reluctantly admitted he had done so.

In documents submitted in court, the Toronto Police say city staff told them that Ford smoked marijuana in their presence; that he used Oxycontin, a banned substance, as well as hung around with prostitutes. Ford would also drive around in a state of drunkenness and at one party when he was completely drunk, he issued threats against others.

Thousands of Torontonians gathered outside Toronto City Hall yesterday demanding the mayor’s resignation. In the Council chamber, an overwhelming majority of councillors passed a resolution demanding he take a leave of absence and sort out his problem.

Ford has refused to step down.

END


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