77 arrested in Fla. cyberporn sweep

• Tweet

TALLAHASSEE, Fla., June 10 (UPI) -- Florida officials say they have arrested 77 men on charges of possessing obscene materials in a cybercrime sweep.

Florida state Attorney General Bill McCollum said the arrests came as part of a 10-week crackdown on Internet child pornography dubbed "Operation Orange Tree," targeting some of the state's worst alleged cybercrime offenders, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported.

Accompanying McCollum was John Walsh, host of the television show "America's Most Wanted" and father of a 6-year-boy who was kidnapped from a Hollywood, Fla., mall and killed in 1981, the newspaper said.

"As a Floridian, I'm proud of the work of all the agencies involved -- it sets a great example for the other 49 states," Walsh said.

McCollum said 17 of those arrested possessed a tutorial video on how to sexually molest children without being detected, while five minors were rescued from abusive situations.