MOSCOW, December 11 (RAPSI) – The head of Russia's Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, has proposed to make it a criminal offence to possess child pornography, RIA Novosti reported on Thursday.

Bastrykin said at a working meeting of the committee that offenders should not be blindly sent to prison, they should be subject to "large fines."

He said that the internet was "rife with child pornography.”

A bill introducing criminal penalties for possession of child pornography was drafted in 2012, but it hasn't been discussed yet, Bastrykin added. He claimed that certain lawmakers in the State Duma were not interested in adoption of the bill.

Russian Children's Rights Commissioner Pavel Astakhov also took part in the meeting and pledged his support for introduction of criminal penalties for possessing child pornography.

This step would undermine business of criminal groups that are engaged in sexual exploitation of children and production of child pornography, would help prevent more serious crimes with the regard to children, Astakhov said.