The National Police have dismantled a child prostitution ring that operated through three psychological centres situated on the island of Tenerife, where several victims were taken to record sexual acts. Fourteen individuals have been apprehended.
The operation commenced in July 2022 with an inquiry into a potential case of child prostitution and was divided into three distinct phases.
During the first phase, a significant operation was executed at various locations across the island, involving five raids and searches. This resulted in the apprehension of six men and the identification of five minors who were victims of the crimes investigated.
Moreover, after scrutinising the seized items, more than 200 purchasers of child pornography were identified throughout Spain, according to a statement from the National Police.
Following the identification of additional individuals implicated in the scheme, the investigation progressed to a second stage, culminating in the arrest of six more men who had varying degrees of involvement in the offences related to the prostitution of minors, child pornography, and sexual assault of a person under the age of sixteen.
The third phase then commenced, during which two additional men were identified who had allegedly engaged the prostitution services of several of the recognised minors. Upon entering and searching the residence of one of these identified individuals, he was arrested and subsequently remanded in provisional custody.
A psychologist involved in the case
One of those apprehended for his alleged role in the child prostitution offence turned out to be a psychologist who established two clinics in which he also conducted his professional practice.
The suspect purportedly solicited the sexual services of at least two underage victims on multiple occasions, taking them to one of the psychological clinics where he recorded many of these interactions.
Furthermore, as a result of the investigation, it emerged that this individual had made several payments to two of the men involved in the operation, who were engaged in the trafficking of child pornography featuring one of the minors.
In light of these discoveries and considering the possibility that the suspect, exploiting his position as a mental health professional, could receive sexual favours from the minors attending his clinic for appropriate psychological therapy, a search warrant was sought for these offices and his residence. The aim was, among other things, to identify further possible victims from the patient list.
Consequently, during the raids and searches conducted at his home and at the three offices of the psychological practice that he founded, three hard drives, two laptops, a tablet, two mobile phones, three antique firearms, €11,400 in cash, and a box of DVDs were uncovered.
Once the raids and searches were concluded, statements were collected from various employees of the centre and one of the arrest’s victims, corroborating that he had recorded the sexual encounters without the victim’s awareness and, thus, without her consent.
Following the presentation of the detainee before the appropriate judicial authority, he was ordered to be held in provisional imprisonment.
To date, investigators are continuing to analyse all the data stored on the confiscated devices, hoping to uncover more victims of the detainee, as well as additional paedophile material.
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