Notorious Child Abuser Caught In Hong Kong

[voivod]

May 2 - A man accused of raping his own daughter and posting video of the attack on the Internet was being held in Hong Kong Wednesday in what authorities called the arrest of one of the world's most notorious child molesters.



Kenneth John Freeman, a 44-year-old former sheriff's deputy from Washington state, was apprehended by Chinese police Tuesday night using arrest information from U.S. authorities. It's not clear what Freeman was doing in Hong Kong, but "obviously, he was trying to escape," said U.S. Marshals Service spokeswoman Nikki Credic.

The Web video of the attack became one of the most widely downloaded child pornography videos in recent years, officials said. Freeman's daughter is now a teenager who advocates against child sexual abuse, and has appeared on TV to tell her story.

Freeman was one of the fugitives most wanted by both the Marshals and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Web video was featured on the TV show "America's Most Wanted," which in turn triggered calls to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that helped identify the girl.

"Freeman will be returned for trial here, where penalties for child exploitation are among the toughest in the world," said Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Julie Myers, who oversees ICE.

U.S. Marshals director John F. Clark called it a "complex, international case."

Authorities said Freeman, facing local and federal charges, fled the U.S. last year. Investigators tracked him down in Suzhou, a city in China, where he is believed to have been working at the local office of a U.S.-based company. The U.S. does not have an extradition agreement with the Chinese government to return fugitives to their native nations.

However, such a treaty does exist between the U.S. and Hong Kong. In the last several weeks, investigators discovered Freeman was planning to travel to Hong Kong, where he was arrested on his arrival at the airport, officials said. Trying to flee, he injured four Chinese police officers while resisting arrest, officials said.

Credic said it was not clear when Freeman would be returned to the U.S.

His arrest follows more than a year of investigation by the Marshals, ICE, the State Department and the Benton County Sheriff's office in Washington state.

[jimmy812]

His last name is Freeman. Uh, not anymore bud.

What a fuckin' scumbag. This guy should be tortured slowly!!!

[ZeoBandit]

Fry his ass.

[smithjc]

Yeah he'll go through the court system here, but the real justice will be prison justice.

That is one sick man. Tie him to the car and drag him.

[Menlow]

Yeah he'll go through the court system here, but the real justice will be prison justice.

That is one sick man. Tie him to the car and drag him.

Please put that man in general population.

[voivod]

American Charged With Raping Daughter, Distributing Video Via Internet and Fleeing to China, Agrees to Return to U.S.
Monday , September 10, 2007

HONG KONG — An American man accused of raping his daughter and posting the videos on the Internet has agreed to be extradited from Hong Kong to the United States, his lawyer said Monday.


Kenneth John Freeman, a former reserve sheriff's deputy on the U.S. Marshals 15 most-wanted list, has been challenging the extradition request since he was arrested while traveling in Hong Kong in May.

But his lawyer, Giles Surman, told a Hong Kong court on Monday that "after due consideration, Freeman decided he will consent to surrender and be sent to the United States." The extradition process could take three to six weeks, Surman said.

But the attorney added, "Freeman maintains his innocence."

The judge, Wahab Abu Bakar bin, consented to Freeman's extradition, but final approval must come from Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang.

Freeman, 44, a computer adviser, bodybuilder and reserve sheriff's deputy, fled his home in Seattle last year after his 17-year-old daughter told her mother that he had assaulted her four years earlier.

The teenager also told her story on national television, which helped identify her as the victim in a series of child pornography videos on the Internet, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.

Freeman allegedly distributed those videos on the Internet.

Freeman was charged in Benton County Superior Court in Washington state with three counts of child rape and jumping bail. He faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment if convicted.

He also faces federal charges of producing and distributing child pornography.

He flew from Vancouver, Canada, to Hong Kong in March 2006, then to China, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Working with Chinese authorities, U.S. investigators tracked down Freeman in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou near Shanghai, where he is believed to have been working as a computer consultant for a U.S.-based company.

Freeman was arrested in May at Hong Kong's border with mainland China.

Authorities waited to arrest Freeman in Hong Kong because mainland China does not have an extradition treaty with the United States. Although Hong Kong is part of China, the former British colony is governed separately and has its own legal system.

[chefcraig]

I know that I can be exceedingly slow off the mark at times, yet...if a fellow is innocent of a crime, why would he leave the continental U.S. and head for a country that coincidentally has somewhat iffy extradition laws? I mean, what's wrong with Canada? Quite a beautiful country, terrific fishing and a generous, kind citizenry. Not to mention that in some cases, one can take a bus or even walk there from here.

Anyone have a handle on this?

[voivod]

SPOKANE, Wash. — An American man accused of raping his daughter and posting videos of the abuse online has been returned to the United States from Hong Kong and was due in court Friday, federal authorities said.

Kenneth John Freeman, 45, once one of the United States' most wanted fugitives, was to be arraigned in Spokane on federal charges a day after his extradition. He was indicted here in January on one count of producing child pornography and one count of transporting child pornography.

Agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Marshals Service flew to Hong Kong on Monday and returned with Freeman on Thursday afternoon, U.S. Marshal Mike Kline said.

Freeman is being held at the Spokane County jail, where a sergeant said he had refused to talk to reporters.

Freeman was living in Suzhou, China, and had a valid visa, so authorities in that country were unable to act, Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Rice said. But Chinese authorities monitored his movements and notified U.S. authorities of his intended travel to Hong Kong, which does have an extradition treaty with the U.S., Rice said.

ICE agent Mike McCool said it would be inappropriate to discuss details of China's involvement in the extradition.

"I would just highly congratulate their efforts," he said.

In a statement released to news media last week, Freeman did not deny allegations by his now 17-year-old daughter that he videotaped her abuse four years ago and distributed the sexual assault via Internet pornographers.

After his daughter discussed the case on the TV show "America's Most Wanted," tips helped identify her as the victim in a series of child pornography videos, according to the Marshals Service. Video of the abuse has been widely downloaded, officials said.

Video files depicting the abuse also were discovered on a computer Freeman had given to his daughter.

Farabee, the Benton County prosecutor, said the girl's family is pleased Freeman has been returned to face charges.

In his statement, Freeman did not directly address the sexual abuse allegations against him but said "he never physically hurt or threatened" his daughter.

[chefcraig]

Judging by the middle photo, it comes as a surprise to discover he's interested in females at all.

[billy007]

Judging by the middle photo, it comes as a surprise to discover he's interested in females at all.

Since there's quite a difference between a small girl and a full-grown woman, I wonder if there's not that much difference between a "man" who prefers prepubescent females and one that doesn't prefer them at all?

[looper_guy]

Every time one of these storys comes out, I think about how StillEddiesAngel's solution involving a cheese-grater and genitals makes more and more sense. I hope there is lots of "prison love" in his future.