Approximately five children are sexually abused in Colombia every day with the purpose of selling the films and photos of their sexual abuse to child pornography rings, police said Wednesday.
In an interview with W Radio, the director of the National Police’s intelligence unit DIJIN, General Jorge Luis Vargas, said that last year alone 4,471 Colombians had been linked to sexual abuse of minors and child pornography.
Earlier Tuesday, seven people were arrested throughout Colombia as part of an international police operation targeting 110 alleged pedophiles and child pornographers in 23 countries in the Americas and Europe.
According to Vargas, Colombian authorities have arrested more than 10,000 people on pedophilia and child pornography charges since 2011.
Last year alone, the country asked Interpol to issue 189 red notices related to pedophilia and child pornography charges, the general told the radio station.
In the course of this year, 101 of these international arrest warrants were issued on charges related to child pornography.
According to the country’s Medical Examiner’s Office, two thirds of last year’s 21,399 reported victims of sexual abuse are younger than 14. Among boys, the most affected age group is between 5 and 9 while among girls the most affected age group is between 10 and 13.