RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Altogether 61 individuals were arrested Thursday in a large crackdown on child pornography carried out by Brazil's Federal Police.

The police apprehended these individuals in flagrante from 23 Brazilian states, and seized a number of computers and other items.

The arrest was the third phase of a coordinated effort seeking to punish child pornographers and pedophiles, dubbed the Operation Light in Childhood.

Producing, keeping and sharing child porn are crimes punishable with up to eight years of prison under Brazilian law.

According to the authorities, a man arrested in Rio de Janeiro had as many as 48,000 child porn files on his computer.

"This is a filthy crime which maculates and desecrates our children and youngsters, compromising them and our whole future," Public Security Minister Raul Jungmann said.

Meanwhile, Brazilian police also worked in collaboration with authorities from Argentina. According to the Brazilian federal police, the Argentinian police carried out a simultaneous operation and executed 41 search warrants.

The first phase of the Operation Light in Childhood in 2017 saw 112 individuals arrested and the second, in May 2018, with 251 arrested.