"I applaud the investigative work of our Internet Cyber Crimes Task Force," Blunt said. "Our law enforcement officers have made significant progress in stopping child predators, but the problem remains."
Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd and Platte County Sheriff Richard Anderson delivered a presentation on the county's Cyber Crime Unit, and the creation of the Western Missouri Cyber Crimes Task Force. Zahnd called for the legislature to pass stronger penalties for child pornography, noting producers and distributors of child porn are currently eligible for probation. Anderson says one in four children have had an unwanted exposure to sexually explicit photographs on the internet. Glendale Police Sergeant Joe Laramie and St. Charles County Sheriff's Lieutenant Chris Mateja briefed Blunt on the extent of the problem, in urban and rural Missouri.
The current budget includes $250,000 for grants to Multi-jurisdictional Internet Cyber Crimes Task Forces. During the meeting, Blunt told law enforcement authorities he would like to increase that amount.
