A fourteen-year manhunt comes to an end
One of the world’s most wanted paedophiles has been captured after a 14-year manhunt that ended in Malaysia.
Alladin Lanim was tracked down in Sarawak, a “sleepy up-country town” where he was preying on local children.
The 40-year-old became one of the most sought-after predators in the world after developing a sinister reputation on the dark web where he shared stories of his horrific conquests.
For at least 14 years his actions were left unchecked despite numerous nations attempting to find him. Lanim abused children between the ages of two and 16, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.
Four children aged nine to fourteen were rescued and returned home to their families following Lanim’s arrest.
Lanim had been sharing child abuse material on the dark web since 2007 and had also been linked to more than 1000 multimedia files depicting the sexual abuse of minors.
“He was so prolific with so many victims, that’s why he became a high priority,” said Detective Sergeant Daniel Burnicle, the acting senior officer for the AFP in Kuala Lumpur told the SMH.
Investigators came across images online of Lanim, but that is all they had linking him to the crimes.
AFP officers in Kuala Lumpur, Royal Malaysia Police, and United States Homeland Security investigators searched for the man’s name and location but were unable to make ground on the case.
“It’s just a slow, methodical burn,” said Burnicle. “They’re going through images trying to work out where that location may be so they can follow up. It’s all very difficult with the dark web to track people.”
This year, AUSTRAC, the Australian government’s financial intelligence agency, was searching through records and databases when they found the same image discovered earlier on in the case. However, this time the image had information attached to it.
With the man identified, officials still had to track him down, which Australian investigators were able to do.
Lanim was serving mandatory isolation after arriving back in Sarawak following a trip to west Malaysia.
Officers were waiting for him once he was discharged.
Lanim later pled guilty to eighteen charges and was sentenced to 48 years in prison and fifteen cane strokes.
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