Geraldton man Phillip John Ryan charged for allegedly ordering ‘live-distance’ child abuse from Philippines

A 70-year-old man accused of paying to see children being abused live on camera from his Geraldton home is behind bars, charged with almost 70 child abuse offences. Phillip John Ryan was charged on Wednesday by WA’s Joint Anti Child Exploitation Team over his alleged ordering of “live-distance” child abuse from the Philippines. Police say Mr Ryan made more than 860 payments to “multiple entities” in the Philippines for “purposes including to procure children to be sexually abused”. The abuse was allegedly committed on camera for Mr Ryan to watch live from his Geraldton home. It is alleged records show the man sent more than $443,000 overseas but police are still assessing how much was allegedly spent on child abuse material. Mr Ryan appeared in Geraldton Magistrate’s Court today where he was remanded in custody to appear in court again on April 19. WA JACET is now liaising with Australian Federal Police officers in Manila as well as Philippines authorities to identify child victims and remove them from harm and identify any alleged child abuse facilitators. AFP Acting Inspector Joel Van Den Brun said child sex offenders are not restricted by national or international borders — but neither is law enforcement. “We work closely with partners around the globe to to bring to justice anyone who preys on children, no matter where in the world they are hiding,” he said. The fresh charges came following Mr Ryan’s earlier arrest in September last year by WA JACET — which comprises AFP and WA Police officers. Mr Ryan was allegedly first identified from financial data collected during a separate child protection investigation in South Australia. Officers last year found child abuse material on two devices and Skype chat records allegedly consistent with the procurement of children from “live-distance child abuse”. He was charged with two counts of possessing child abuse material through a carriage service and placed on strict bail, which included a ban from using the internet except for banking, employment of work purposes. Further inquiries resulted him being charged with a further 68 offences, including 39 counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child outside Australia and several counts of procuring a child outside the country for sexual activity and using a carriage service to solicit and access child exploitation material. Some of the charges carry a maximum sentence of up to 20 years behind bars. Members of the public who have any information about people involved in child abuse and exploitation are urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or report online here. Advice and support for parents and carers about how they can help protection children online can be found at ThinkUKnow, an AFP-led education program designed to prevent online child sexual exploitation.