CBI books Mumbai man under POCSO for luring minors online, selling child pornography

New Delhi: The CBI has booked a Mumbai-based small-time TV artist for allegedly running an international racket of selling sexually explicit content comprising minors from abroad, obtained by enticing and blackmailing them on Instagram, officials said Sunday. He contacted over 1,000 users including minors between 10-16 years of age across the United States, Europe, and South Asian countries using the photo-sharing application Instagram, they said. The agency recently searched the residence of the accused, who claims to be a junior artist in TV serials, from where his mobile phone and laptop have been seized, they said. The forensic analysis of the devices has prima facie provided material related to online sexual abuse which the accused later circulated to his clients internationally over WhatsApp and other platforms, they said. The accused, hailing from Haridwar, would pose as a film star to lure and entice minors into online relationships during which he would ask them for pornographic photographs and videos, which he used to trap them into his illicit net, officials said. The accused would take their WhatsApp numbers to chat with them and during video calls asked them to perform sexual acts which would be shared with his clients in various countries through Instagram, they said. In case any victims decided to stop meeting such demands or maintaining contact with him, the accused threatened them by saying he would share their sexually explicit photos with their families and friends, the official said. The agency has charged him under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Information Technology Act. Recently, the CBI had booked another person for allegedly selling child sexual abuse material (CSAM) for Rs 250 using messaging application Telegram through three accounts and 20 groups. The CBI has a special unit on Online Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Prevention/ Investigation (OCSAE).