The arrests were part of a vast crackdown on pedophilia in France that began on Monday. More than 2 million photos and 28,000 videos were discovered on computers seized in the sweep, officials said on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing.
Those arrested were all men between 19 and 70 years old and included executives, teachers and military men. Officials said 163 of those detained had acknowledged having downloaded photos and videos of child porn.
Two men face preliminary charges of "sexually abusing children," and a third — a repeat offender — was sentenced Wednesday to 12 months in prison. Fifteen formal investigations have been opened for "holding and spreading images of minors of a pornographic nature," officials said.
Officers from several French police units had been preparing the sweep since January, following a tip-off from an Italian child protection organization.
More arrests could be forthcoming as police in other countries crackdown on others who downloaded the same images, the officials said.
A Polish police spokesman said Friday that 55 Polish nationals were arrested on suspicion of spreading child pornography over the Internet.
It was not immediately clear if the Polish crackdown was related to the French sweep.
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