Joburg child porn case struck off the roll
The case against one of six men accused of involvement in an international child pornography ring was struck off the roll in the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.
The case would return to court once the Director of Public Prosecutions had supplied the State with a certificate confirming whether or not the trial against the 45-year-old man should proceed.
He was charged with possession of child pornography after being arrested along with five other men in August.
The six men from four provinces were arrested for possession of child pornography on August 15 after police received a tip-off from Interpol.
The accused were arrested in Lichtenburg and Potchefstroom, Bloemfontein, White River, and in Douglasdale and Florida in Johannesburg.
The group is made up of a lawyer, a dermatologist, a businessman, two teachers, and a retired school principal.
Police raided several homes in various provinces in August.
Among the items seized were 672 DVDs, 22 memory sticks, eight laptops, two computer tablets, 39 external hard drives, and 25 books containing images of child pornography.
The men were appearing separately in different courts. Police were investigating if they were involved in distribution and manufacturing of child pornography, and if they were linked to an international syndicate.
The Times reported the case had links to Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, Western Europe, and Australasia.
It reported that children as young as five were believed to have been groomed to have sex with each other and adults. The images were believed to have been generated overseas, and local police -- with the help of their international counterparts -- were investigating whether South African children were involved.
-Sapa