"It's important to (be able to) tell people, 'Come forward and help us out and things will go easier on you,'" said Crown prosecutor Steve Bilodeau at Treleaven's sentencing hearing yesterday. "We have to find some way to get into these underground lairs."

The married father was a key administrator in an Internet child-porn chatroom, Kiddypics and Kiddyvids, that trades in explicit pictures and live streaming video of real children, including toddlers and babies, being raped.

Treleaven was arrested Jan. 26, when police raided his home and found him on his computer tending to the more than 90 users waiting to download child-porn from his 20-gigabyte stash, according to agreed facts.

Nearly 40 people have been arrested in at least five countries, including Canada, the U.S., England and Australia. Without Treleaven's help, "there'd be fewer people in jail," said city police Internet Child Exploitation team Det. Randy Wickins yesterday. "We have people in jail ... because of his help."

The 3 1/2 years was the sentence jointly recommended by the Crown and defence in Treleaven's case. The maximum sentence for distributing child porn is 10 years.

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