The Balearic Islands Supreme Court of Justice (TSJB) has acknowledged a case involving undercover operations by the National Police in an internet pedophilia network, conducted without prior court authorization. The proceedings concern the arrest of a young man in Palma and a subsequent six-year sentence handed down by the State Court for disseminating material depicting sexual assaults on minors. The TSJB is currently reconsidering part of the verdict, finding that the undercover officer’s fundamental rights were violated when the officer joined a closed group without judicial safeguard. The court notes that verified law must be followed and asserts,
“There are no shortcuts in the rule of law”. The ruling confirms that only court-authorized house searches are valid, while the charge of possession of child pornography remains upheld because the defendant reportedly agreed to a seven-month prison term at trial. In light of these considerations, the magistrates partially grant the appeal. (Defense counsel: Antoni Vicens.)
The investigation began in 2016, conducted by the National Police’s Central Technological Brigade. Agents detected a link on the dark web through the TOR network to a pedophile file-sharing community that operated via Telegram. After infiltrating the group, police were invited into a Skype chat where participants exchanged videos and photographs.
By infiltrating the group, investigators traced the defendant to his residence in the Son Gotleu district of Palma, using IP-based identification for a 27-year-old individual. As described by the TSJB, the operation had proceeded without judicial authorization up to that point, and police later approached an investigative court in Palma to validate the information already obtained.
On 7 February 2017, investigators obtained permission to search the defendant’s home. Several computing devices containing explicit child pornography material were seized, including videos and photos of two infants subjected to various forms of torture and sexual abuse. The material also showed evidence of exchanges with other users. The Palma County Court concluded that the defendant was the author of a crime involving the sexual exploitation of minors, aggravated by the brutality evident in the material.
The TSJB has subsequently annulled all investigations conducted by the National Police that occurred without judicial control. The court emphasizes that access to a closed messaging group requires judicial authorization, and notes that the undercover officer had used a false identity to gain entry into that community. The ruling clarifies that any access to closed-group communications must be accompanied by proper judicial oversight, which was lacking in this case.
don’t blame yourself
Judges acknowledge the seriousness of the crimes involved, yet insist that the rule of law remains intact and that police actions must always be governed by appropriate judicial controls to prevent misconduct or deviation from legal procedures.
The court recognizes that the defendant admitted, during trial, possessing a substantial amount of material depicting child exploitation. He denied sending those images to others, however. In light of the new judgment, the TSJB finds him responsible for the offense of possessing child pornography, aiming to avoid further delay, and sentences him to seven months in prison. The decision is subject to possible appeal to the Supreme Court, should the defense choose to pursue it. (Source: TSJB ruling, translated summary.)