Sounds like a pretext

"... according to US law, if we keep these images or forward them to anyone else we are committing a crime".

How can that be possible? How can be that, if you forward it to a legal body, say Brazilian justice or Interpol, you are comitting a crime. Would any actual judge or tribunal upheld that?

It really feels like they are sheltering behind a very narrow interpretation of the law and trying to protect their criminal customers with a legal pretext.