A bankrupt motel operator has become the first person in New Zealand to be sent to jail for organising a child sex tour to Thailand. The 48-year-old has been given a three year sentence. An anti-exploitation group say despite it being a landmark case, child prostitution here and overseas is a growing problem. The destination was Pattaya, Thailand, an area known for its thriving sex industry. The plan was to have sex with young boys.The man believed he could run a business based on child sex tours and organised one. Justice Edwin Wylie at the Auckland High Court says the man was motivated primarily by his desire to make money. “Organising sex tours where the intent is that the traveller has sex with underage children is despicable,” he said.Stop Demand founder Denise Ritchie says the fact we have had our citizens go over and exploit the vulnerability and poverty of children in many of those countries is “heinous”, adding “it’s a shocking crime”.
Location
New Zealand · Auckland, New Zealand · 2012
(location generalized to protect survivors) Response & intervention
The February 2012 jail term was not the man's first. He has served time in Australia for sexually offending boys and was deported to New Zealand in 2001. No minimum jail term was set today which meant the convicted man could apply for parole in 12 months time.
The source, 3 News, could not identify the man because he is facing other charges but says he was caught when authorities found him coming into New Zealand in 2009 with photos of young Thai boys. A year later an undercover police officer contacted him about tours he advertised on a website.“He said that he wanted to try and find a young friend. You replied, ‘how young?’ ‘Don't worry, I don't mind’,” reiterated the judge as he went over the evidence. Once an itinerary was arranged and money changed hands, police made the arrest.
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