AUCKLAND, New Zealand – A 30-year-old Auckland man, Todd Keith Laurance Dale Williams, has been sentenced to three years and seven months in prison for knowingly possessing nearly 9,000 files of child sexual exploitation material.
The case followed a joint investigation by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) and an international law enforcement agency, focusing on the online distribution and possession of illegal child abuse material via a social media platform.
Williams pleaded guilty to four charges, after investigators found 8,928 objectionable images and videos stored across his devices and online accounts. The content included graphic abuse of infants and children by adults.
Williams came under suspicion in early 2023, and a report from the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) later confirmed that a disturbing video uploaded to social media was traced back to him.
Tim Houston, manager of the DIA’s Digital Child Exploitation Team, emphasized the harm such material causes:
“Every image and video possessed by this offender depicts a crime scene, and the worst moment in a child’s life. Those who download this content help perpetuate those crimes.”
Houston stressed the importance of international cooperation in identifying and prosecuting individuals who possess or trade child abuse material.
As part of his sentencing, the Auckland District Court ordered that all devices used by Williams to store or access the material be permanently destroyed.
Williams was also added to New Zealand’s child sex offender registry.
