International Child Pornography Ring To Be Prosecuted In Shreveport

An international child pornography ring will be prosecuted here in Shreveport. 

So far, 72 people have been indicted.  Why will the case be handled locally? 

Federal prosecutors say the investigation began when 48 year old Edward Oedewaldt of Arcadia was arrested earlier this year.  Information found on his computer led to the identities of other suspects in this ring.  The network was called Dreamboard where members were required to upload pornography involving children under age 12. Oedewaldt lived in a small building back behind his sister's home on Highway 519.  Oedewaldt has pleaded not guilty and awaits trial. U.S. Attorney for the Western District, Stephanie Finley says:

 "These indictments capture the activity of a major, global child pornography and exploitation enterprise whose primary objective was to sexually abuse vulnerable children.
Many of the members of the Dreamboard network sexually abused children under aged 12 and produced images of young children and shared those images online.

U. S. Attorney General Eric Holder calls the criminal activity a "nightmare" for the children and said that some of the children featured in the images and videos were infants.   9 of the suspects have been arrested abroad.  They are expected to be brought to Shreveport for prosecution.
Arrests have been made in several countries:  Canada, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, Hungary, Kenya, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Qatar, Serbia, Sweden and Switzerland.