A Brisbane law professor who posed as the pop sensation online to solicit sexual images from children has been charged with over 900 child sex offences.
The 42-year-old man, whose alleged victims included children in Australia, Britain and the United States, was already facing charges of possessing material exploiting children and using internet and social media to entrap children the under age 16, Queensland police said.
He now faces a further 931 criminal charges for offences including rape, the indecent treatment of children and “making child-exploitation material” which the police stretch back to at least 2007.
After refusing police access to his social media accounts, they raided his house and allegedly discovered the man was using Facebook and Skype to communicate with his victims and convince them to send him sexually explicit images.
Detective Inspector Jon Rouse said Taskforce Argos, a force dedicated to combating the sexual exploitation of children online, will continue to battle the “frankly horrendous” breadth of offences and will continue “keeping children safe”.
“This investigation demonstrates both the vulnerability of children that are utilizing social media and communication applications, and the global reach and skill that child-sex offenders have to groom and seduce victims,” he said in a statement.
“The fact that so many children could believe that they were communicating with this particular celebrity highlights the need for a serious rethink about the way that we as a society educate our children about online safety.”
The real Justin Bieber, whose stardom was driven largely by adoring, young female fans, is currently touring Australia.
