Latest news with #ICAC
CBS News
4 hours ago
- CBS News
Broward teacher arrested on child pornography charges, police say
A physical education teacher at Westchester Elementary School is facing child pornography charges following a months-long investigation, according to the Coral Springs Police Department. Investigators identified the teacher as 60-year-old Craig Rogers. Tip leads to investigation The investigation began May 22, when a detective with the Coral Springs Police Department's Special Victims Unit, assigned to the Broward Sheriff's Office Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force, received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, police said. The tip indicated that an individual using a Kik/Media Lab account was distributing child sexual abuse material through the Kik social media platform. Police said numerous photographs found in Rogers' Kik account depicted his office and equipment room at the school. Investigators said messages from various chat groups, provided by Kik, showed Rogers referring to himself as a "pervert teacher." Search warrant and arrest On July 2, police executed a search warrant at a Studio 6 Motel in Coral Springs, where Rogers had been renting a room, authorities said. Several devices were seized from the room for forensic analysis and Rogers was arrested without incident. The investigation remains active and police are urging anyone with information to contact police. Broward Schools "deeply disturbed" by allegations Broward Schools said the district and school administration are "deeply disturbed" by the allegations and are cooperating fully with law enforcement. Rogers had been reassigned away from the school and students in April 2025 following an off-campus arrest in a separate case, according to the district. His employment history shows he has been a teacher at Westchester Elementary since July 2003, serving as a physical education teacher since July 2004.
ABC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
PNG anti-corruption commissioners suspended after accusing each other of offences
Two Australians and a New Zealander at the helm of Papua New Guinea's first anti-corruption watchdog have been quietly suspended, with all three accusing each other of criminal offences. The decision to suspend commissioners Andrew Forbes, Daniel Baulch and Graham Gill was gazetted on June 20 but has not been publicly announced. The chief commissioner, Mr Forbes, announced the suspensions at a staff meeting last week, while deputies Mr Baulch and Mr Gill were out of the country. The development has been labelled a "major blow" to PNG's fledgling Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), which has only made one arrest and no prosecutions since it began operations in 2023. It follows a drawn-out feud between the three commissioners, which rendered the organisation "chaotic" and "dysfunctional" according to inside sources. Tensions reached fever pitch last month when Mr Forbes referred his deputies to police over alleged financial misconduct, prompting Mr Gill and Mr Baulch to leave the country. The deputies told the ABC they would "strongly defend the allegations" and said they believed they had been "subjected to retaliatory behaviour". Last year, Mr Baulch and Mr Gill accused Mr Forbes of suspected corruption and abuse of power, alleging in a letter to the prime minister that he secretly manipulated ICAC legislation to give himself exclusive power over key agency functions. A warrant for Mr Forbes's arrest was issued in November, but he obtained a court injunction to suspend the probe. When contacted by the ABC, Mr Forbes declined to comment. Mr Baulch and Mr Gill have also declined to comment on the suspensions; however, the ABC understands they are considering legal options. Maholopa Laveil, an economics lecturer at the University of Papua New Guinea, said the developments were troubling. "It is shocking and disappointing that all three commissioners have been suspended, even more so given that two are from Australia and one from New Zealand," Mr Laveil said. "There would be similar shock and disappointment … had they been Papua New Guinean … but even larger disappointment because they're from Australia and NZ." Mr Forbes is a lawyer from Brisbane who was previously a partner at the commercial law firm Turks Legal and has no apparent prior experience in anti-corruption work. Mr Baulch is a former detective with Victoria Police in Australia and Mr Gill was a senior executive in charge of evaluation, intelligence and corporate affairs at the Serious Fraud Office in New Zealand. They were selected by a group — chaired by Prime Minister James Marape with representatives from the opposition, the judiciary and churches — called the Appointments Committee. Questions have been raised about the lack of Papua New Guinean representation among ICAC commissioners. But lawyer and MP Kerenga Kua, who helped set up PNG's ICAC, defended the decision. "I thought it was good to have people who are not connected to the people of this country so they can do a totally impartial job," he said. Mr Kua believed the problems came down to a clash of individual personalities. Two weeks ago, the Appointments Committee resolved to appoint PNG nationals Mr Thomas Eluh, Justice Ellenas Batari and Justice Don Sawong as acting commissioners. Do you know more about this story? Contact Mr Eluh was ICAC's interim chairman before the commission was appointed and Justice Batari and Justice Sawong have served as Supreme Court judges. But the acting commissioners have not yet taken up their positions, leaving the organisation in a leadership limbo. Kerenga Kua said he was confident the acting commissioners were equipped for the job. But there are concerns the leadership struggles within ICAC have set the organisation back — with a number of senior staff having resigned over the tensions. Dr Grant Walton, a Pacific governance and anti-corruption expert at the Australian National University, said the suspension of the commissioners was a "major blow". "This is going to set that institution back even further and undermine the hopes that many people had that the PNG government was going to be serious in its response to corruption in the country," he said. Maholopa Laveil said the ICAC had failed to meet people's expectations of prosecuting high-level corruption in PNG — estimated to cost the country over a billion dollars every year. Since being established, the agency has only made one arrest, although the ABC understands some high-level officials were being investigated. Mr Laveil said it was also a blow to Australia and other partners' efforts to support governance reforms in PNG. Strengthening PNG's ICAC is a key pillar of an IMF economic reform program that underpins more than a billion dollars in budget support that Australia has given PNG since 2020. Others have complained about the Appointments Committee's failure to deal with the issues swiftly, as more than a year has passed since it received an initial complaint against Mr Forbes. A second complaint against Mr Baulch was referred to the committee in August last year by Mr Forbes. One ICAC insider told the ABC that the slow response allowed issues to fester within the organisation. Committee member Cardinal John Ribat said besides the initial meeting to appoint the original commissioners in 2023, he had not been invited to a single meeting until a couple of weeks ago. Cardinal Ribat said he was not involved in selecting the investigations committee that probed allegations against at least two of the commissioners last year. He said he was also concerned that the inclusion of the prime minister and opposition leader compromised the committee's independence. The ABC has contacted the prime minister and the opposition leader for a response.
Business Upturn
24-06-2025
- Business Upturn
Accelerating Child Exploitation Investigations: Cellebrite Integrates Data from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)
TYSONS CORNER, Va., June 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cellebrite (NASDAQ: CLBT), a global leader in premier Digital Investigative solutions for the public and private sectors, today announced the expansion of its relationship with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that will help speed up investigations involving crimes against children. NCMEC's CyberTipline hash value list is now integrated within Cellebrite's flagship digital forensics software, Cellebrite Inseyets, allowing public safety agencies to immediately pinpoint known child sexual abuse material (CSAM) files – speeding up time to evidence and justice for victims and survivors of abuse. The hash value list contains approximately 10-million files reported by electronic service providers to NCMEC, which have been confirmed to depict apparent CSAM. Instead of spending hours reviewing data to locate CSAM on suspected offenders' devices, this integration allows digital forensic examiners and investigators around the world to match CSAM files instantly. This provides investigators with the evidence needed to arrest and prosecute offenders, and in parallel, limit law enforcement's exposure to the material, which helps protect their mental health. 'This integration represents a critical leap forward in our efforts to protect children and hold offenders accountable,' said John Shehan, Senior Vice President, Exploited Children Division & International Engagement at NCMEC. 'We're proud to strengthen our nine-year partnership with Cellebrite in the fight to end online child exploitation.' 'Any tool that speeds up time to evidence is critical for our teams,' said Ben Morrison, the Washington Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Commander. 'Digital evidence is the holy grail in ICAC investigations, and this integration means getting to more cases and protecting more kids.' New Hampshire ICAC Task Force Commander Eric Kinsman adds, 'We are very excited about this integration. When a known CSAM match is made, it adds to the probable cause in an investigation which greatly increases our chances to arrest an offender, ensuring they are no longer a danger in our community.' 'Our mission is in lock step with NCMEC, and it's an honor to partner with them and help the heroes working these cases on the front lines,' said David Gee, Cellebrite's chief marketing officer. 'This integration will be a game changer and will undoubtedly save and prevent our most vulnerable from the most heinous crimes.' This integration, available to Cellebrite Design Partners for early access now and generally available the week of June 30, 2025, is part of Cellebrite's 'Operation Find Them All' (OFTA) initiative. The landmark program is helping public safety agencies use technology to protect children – alongside strategic partners including NCMEC, The Exodus Road and Raven. Since launching in January of 2024, OFTA has assisted in numerous investigations that have helped rescue hundreds of victims and resulted in the arrests of dozens of perpetrators. OFTA is playing an important, active, ongoing role in helping to further investigations where NCMEC is assisting public safety agencies in cases involving missing and endangered children. References to Websites and Social Media Platforms References to information included on, or accessible through, websites and social media platforms do not constitute incorporation by reference of the information contained at or available through such websites or social media platforms, and you should not consider such information to be part of this press release. About Cellebrite Cellebrite's (Nasdaq: CLBT) mission is to enable its global customers to protect and save lives by enhancing digital intelligence and accelerating justice in communities around the world. Cellebrite's AI-powered Case-to-Closure (C2C) platform enables customers to lawfully access, collect, analyze and share digital evidence in legally sanctioned investigations while preserving data privacy. Thousands of public safety organizations, intelligence agencies and businesses rely on the Company's cloud-ready digital forensic and investigative solutions to close cases faster and safeguard communities. To learn more, visit us at and find us on social media @Cellebrite. About NCMEC The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is a private, non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation whose mission is to help find missing children, reduce child sexual exploitation, and prevent child victimization. NCMEC works with families, victims, private industry, law enforcement, and the public to assist with preventing child abductions, recovering missing children, and providing services to deter and combat child sexual exploitation. Contacts: MediaVictor CooperSr. Director of Global Corporate Communications [email protected] +1 404.510.2823
The Advertiser
24-06-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Premier's ex-partner spun 'deviated' yarn on $48m deal
Former state MP Daryl Maguire created an inaccurate story about an expected cut from a multi-million property deal days before facing a corruption inquiry, a court has revealed. The former member for Wagga Wagga, whose clandestine relationship with ex-NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian led to her political downfall, gave his altered evidence during a NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption hearing in July 2018. After Maguire was found guilty on Friday of misleading ICAC, details about Magistrate Clare Farnan's verdict were released on Tuesday. The Local Court judgment reveals that the ex-MP knew he would be asked about expected financial benefits but knowingly misled the corruption probe. At ICAC, Maguire was questioned about what he expected to get out of the sale of an estimated $48 million property development in Campsie in Sydney's southwest. ICAC grilled Maguire and others in 2018 under Operation Dasha, which probed allegations of corruption at the local Canterbury council. At a criminal hearing earlier in 2025, crown prosecutors estimated that the former MP would have gained $720,000 from the deal had it gone through. At ICAC, he initially denied expecting a cut but then changed his evidence after covertly recorded telephone conversations showed he wanted a financial benefit at the time. Three days before being grilled at the corruption probe, he spoke to former Wagga Wagga City Council general manager Alan Eldridge about what he would say. "I never asked for a dollar, they never offered a dollar nor would I take a dollar," he said. Ms Farnan noted evidence he had never asked for money then "deviated" when faced with phone calls where he had. This change in evidence was not done out of inadvertence, carelessness or a misunderstanding, the magistrate said. Three days earlier, his mind had been focused on what he would say about the proposed property deal, she found. "He clearly had a recollection of it. He had thought about it. He had developed a story about it that was not accurate," Ms Farnan said. "I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Maguire gave the evidence I have found to be misleading knowing that it was misleading and not believing it to be true." The Wagga Wagga MP resigned from the Berejiklian government after giving evidence, before succumbing to pressure and quitting parliament altogether. ICAC opened a further probe into Maguire, exposing his secret romantic relationship with Ms Berejiklian in 2020. She also stood down from her role and was later found by ICAC to have breached public trust in failing to disclose the relationship, spanning at least five years while she was transport minister, treasurer and then premier. Former state MP Daryl Maguire created an inaccurate story about an expected cut from a multi-million property deal days before facing a corruption inquiry, a court has revealed. The former member for Wagga Wagga, whose clandestine relationship with ex-NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian led to her political downfall, gave his altered evidence during a NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption hearing in July 2018. After Maguire was found guilty on Friday of misleading ICAC, details about Magistrate Clare Farnan's verdict were released on Tuesday. The Local Court judgment reveals that the ex-MP knew he would be asked about expected financial benefits but knowingly misled the corruption probe. At ICAC, Maguire was questioned about what he expected to get out of the sale of an estimated $48 million property development in Campsie in Sydney's southwest. ICAC grilled Maguire and others in 2018 under Operation Dasha, which probed allegations of corruption at the local Canterbury council. At a criminal hearing earlier in 2025, crown prosecutors estimated that the former MP would have gained $720,000 from the deal had it gone through. At ICAC, he initially denied expecting a cut but then changed his evidence after covertly recorded telephone conversations showed he wanted a financial benefit at the time. Three days before being grilled at the corruption probe, he spoke to former Wagga Wagga City Council general manager Alan Eldridge about what he would say. "I never asked for a dollar, they never offered a dollar nor would I take a dollar," he said. Ms Farnan noted evidence he had never asked for money then "deviated" when faced with phone calls where he had. This change in evidence was not done out of inadvertence, carelessness or a misunderstanding, the magistrate said. Three days earlier, his mind had been focused on what he would say about the proposed property deal, she found. "He clearly had a recollection of it. He had thought about it. He had developed a story about it that was not accurate," Ms Farnan said. "I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Maguire gave the evidence I have found to be misleading knowing that it was misleading and not believing it to be true." The Wagga Wagga MP resigned from the Berejiklian government after giving evidence, before succumbing to pressure and quitting parliament altogether. ICAC opened a further probe into Maguire, exposing his secret romantic relationship with Ms Berejiklian in 2020. She also stood down from her role and was later found by ICAC to have breached public trust in failing to disclose the relationship, spanning at least five years while she was transport minister, treasurer and then premier. Former state MP Daryl Maguire created an inaccurate story about an expected cut from a multi-million property deal days before facing a corruption inquiry, a court has revealed. The former member for Wagga Wagga, whose clandestine relationship with ex-NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian led to her political downfall, gave his altered evidence during a NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption hearing in July 2018. After Maguire was found guilty on Friday of misleading ICAC, details about Magistrate Clare Farnan's verdict were released on Tuesday. The Local Court judgment reveals that the ex-MP knew he would be asked about expected financial benefits but knowingly misled the corruption probe. At ICAC, Maguire was questioned about what he expected to get out of the sale of an estimated $48 million property development in Campsie in Sydney's southwest. ICAC grilled Maguire and others in 2018 under Operation Dasha, which probed allegations of corruption at the local Canterbury council. At a criminal hearing earlier in 2025, crown prosecutors estimated that the former MP would have gained $720,000 from the deal had it gone through. At ICAC, he initially denied expecting a cut but then changed his evidence after covertly recorded telephone conversations showed he wanted a financial benefit at the time. Three days before being grilled at the corruption probe, he spoke to former Wagga Wagga City Council general manager Alan Eldridge about what he would say. "I never asked for a dollar, they never offered a dollar nor would I take a dollar," he said. Ms Farnan noted evidence he had never asked for money then "deviated" when faced with phone calls where he had. This change in evidence was not done out of inadvertence, carelessness or a misunderstanding, the magistrate said. Three days earlier, his mind had been focused on what he would say about the proposed property deal, she found. "He clearly had a recollection of it. He had thought about it. He had developed a story about it that was not accurate," Ms Farnan said. "I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Maguire gave the evidence I have found to be misleading knowing that it was misleading and not believing it to be true." The Wagga Wagga MP resigned from the Berejiklian government after giving evidence, before succumbing to pressure and quitting parliament altogether. ICAC opened a further probe into Maguire, exposing his secret romantic relationship with Ms Berejiklian in 2020. She also stood down from her role and was later found by ICAC to have breached public trust in failing to disclose the relationship, spanning at least five years while she was transport minister, treasurer and then premier. Former state MP Daryl Maguire created an inaccurate story about an expected cut from a multi-million property deal days before facing a corruption inquiry, a court has revealed. The former member for Wagga Wagga, whose clandestine relationship with ex-NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian led to her political downfall, gave his altered evidence during a NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption hearing in July 2018. After Maguire was found guilty on Friday of misleading ICAC, details about Magistrate Clare Farnan's verdict were released on Tuesday. The Local Court judgment reveals that the ex-MP knew he would be asked about expected financial benefits but knowingly misled the corruption probe. At ICAC, Maguire was questioned about what he expected to get out of the sale of an estimated $48 million property development in Campsie in Sydney's southwest. ICAC grilled Maguire and others in 2018 under Operation Dasha, which probed allegations of corruption at the local Canterbury council. At a criminal hearing earlier in 2025, crown prosecutors estimated that the former MP would have gained $720,000 from the deal had it gone through. At ICAC, he initially denied expecting a cut but then changed his evidence after covertly recorded telephone conversations showed he wanted a financial benefit at the time. Three days before being grilled at the corruption probe, he spoke to former Wagga Wagga City Council general manager Alan Eldridge about what he would say. "I never asked for a dollar, they never offered a dollar nor would I take a dollar," he said. Ms Farnan noted evidence he had never asked for money then "deviated" when faced with phone calls where he had. This change in evidence was not done out of inadvertence, carelessness or a misunderstanding, the magistrate said. Three days earlier, his mind had been focused on what he would say about the proposed property deal, she found. "He clearly had a recollection of it. He had thought about it. He had developed a story about it that was not accurate," Ms Farnan said. "I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Maguire gave the evidence I have found to be misleading knowing that it was misleading and not believing it to be true." The Wagga Wagga MP resigned from the Berejiklian government after giving evidence, before succumbing to pressure and quitting parliament altogether. ICAC opened a further probe into Maguire, exposing his secret romantic relationship with Ms Berejiklian in 2020. She also stood down from her role and was later found by ICAC to have breached public trust in failing to disclose the relationship, spanning at least five years while she was transport minister, treasurer and then premier.
Perth Now
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Perth Now
Premier's ex-partner spun 'deviated' yarn on $48m deal
Former state MP Daryl Maguire created an inaccurate story about an expected cut from a multi-million property deal days before facing a corruption inquiry, a court has revealed. The former member for Wagga Wagga, whose clandestine relationship with ex-NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian led to her political downfall, gave his altered evidence during a NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption hearing in July 2018. After Maguire was found guilty on Friday of misleading ICAC, details about Magistrate Clare Farnan's verdict were released on Tuesday. The Local Court judgment reveals that the ex-MP knew he would be asked about expected financial benefits but knowingly misled the corruption probe. At ICAC, Maguire was questioned about what he expected to get out of the sale of an estimated $48 million property development in Campsie in Sydney's southwest. ICAC grilled Maguire and others in 2018 under Operation Dasha, which probed allegations of corruption at the local Canterbury council. At a criminal hearing earlier in 2025, crown prosecutors estimated that the former MP would have gained $720,000 from the deal had it gone through. At ICAC, he initially denied expecting a cut but then changed his evidence after covertly recorded telephone conversations showed he wanted a financial benefit at the time. Three days before being grilled at the corruption probe, he spoke to former Wagga Wagga City Council general manager Alan Eldridge about what he would say. "I never asked for a dollar, they never offered a dollar nor would I take a dollar," he said. Ms Farnan noted evidence he had never asked for money then "deviated" when faced with phone calls where he had. This change in evidence was not done out of inadvertence, carelessness or a misunderstanding, the magistrate said. Three days earlier, his mind had been focused on what he would say about the proposed property deal, she found. "He clearly had a recollection of it. He had thought about it. He had developed a story about it that was not accurate," Ms Farnan said. "I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Maguire gave the evidence I have found to be misleading knowing that it was misleading and not believing it to be true." The Wagga Wagga MP resigned from the Berejiklian government after giving evidence, before succumbing to pressure and quitting parliament altogether. ICAC opened a further probe into Maguire, exposing his secret romantic relationship with Ms Berejiklian in 2020. She also stood down from her role and was later found by ICAC to have breached public trust in failing to disclose the relationship, spanning at least five years while she was transport minister, treasurer and then premier.
