the Project Spade operation as one of the largest child porn busts

76 Americans busted in massive global child porn ring including police officers, teachers and doctors as nearly 400 children are rescued

• Three-year Project Spade operation spearheaded by Canadian authorities netted 348 suspects around the world 
• Police arrested 108 Canadians, 76 Americans and 164 residents of other countries in Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia 
• List of suspects includes nine clergymen, six police officers, 40 teachers and three foster parents
• Youth baseball coach in Washington state allegedly made more than 500 films
• Brian Way, 42, owner of Azov Films, accused of distributing videos of naked boys from 5 to 12 years of age
• More than 350,000 images and over 9,000 videos of graphic child sexual abuse were seized

A sweeping child pornography investigation has led to the rescue of 386 young children around the world and the arrest of 348 people, among them nearly 80 American nationals.

Canadian police described the Project Spade operation as one of the largest child porn busts they've ever seen.

‘It is alleged that officers seized hundreds of thousands of videos detailing horrific sexual acts against very young children, some of the worst that they have ever viewed,’ Toronto Inspector Joanna Beaven-Desjardins said.

Police said 108 people were arrested in Canada, 76 in the U.S and 164 in countries from Spain to South Africa and Australia. Forty school teachers, nine doctors and nurses, and more than 30 people who volunteered with kids were among those taken into custody.

The list of suspects also includes nine clergymen, six police officers and three foster parents.

Police said the children were ‘rescued from child exploitation’ but did not give more details.

Beaven-Desjardins said the investigation began with a Toronto man accused of running a company since 2005 that distributed child pornography videos to the tune of $4million in revenue, CTV News reported. 

Police allege Brian Way, 42, instructed people around the world to create the videos of children ranging from 5 to 12 years of age, then distributed the videos via his company, Azov Films, to international customers.

The videos included naked boys from Germany, Romania and Ukraine, which it marketed as naturist movies and claimed were legal in Canada and the United States. 

The head of the Toronto police sex crimes unit told the Toronto Star that the X-rated images displayed 'horrific acts of sexual abuse — some of the worst (officers) have seen.'

Police said they executed a search warrant at Way's company and home, seizing about 1,000 pieces of evidence: computers, servers, DVD burners, a video editing suite and hundreds of movies.

Way was charged with 24 offences, including child pornography. Police also designated Azov Films as a criminal organization, charging Way with giving directions on behalf of a gang.

The Azovfilms.com website has been shut down.

Beaven-Desjardins said this is the first time in Canada that anyone has been charged with being a part of a criminal organization in regards to child pornography.

Police said they began their investigation in 2010 and worked with Interpol in more than 50 countries including Australia, Spain, Mexico, Norway and Greece.

More than 350,000 images and over 9,000 videos  - about 45 terabytes - of child sexual abuse were found during the probe, and arrests are continuing, Beaven-Desjardins said.

‘This operation shows that international police cooperation works. Despite large amounts of material and that this is time-consuming work, this shows that the Internet is not a safe haven for crimes against children,’ Norwegian police spokesman Bjoern-Erik Ludvigsen said in a statement.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service said it began its investigation by accessing the company website and making undercover purchases.

People making the images included a youth baseball coach in Washington state who made more than 500 films and a school employee in Georgia who put a camera in a student washroom to videotape images of students' genitals, U.S. Postal Inspection Service inspector Gerald O'Farrell said.

Beaven-Desjardins said the investigation is ongoing and believes more arrests will be made.

now if we can just bust those over here in the united snakes