201 kids rescued from online sex exploitation
About 201 children in the country fell prey to online sexual exploitation from 2011 to May 2017, the International Justice Mission (IJM) reported.
Evelyn Pingul, IJM communications, mobilization and advocacy director, said they helped rescue the 201 victims of online sexual exploitation in 58 cases.
“Online sexual exploitation of children is an emerging threat,” said Pingul.
Last May 27, police conducted an entrapment and rescued a 15-year-old girl victim of online sex- ual exploitation in Barangay Opao, Mandaue City.
The mother was caught in the act of offering a live-stream online sex show of her daughter to a foreigner in exchange for money.
SunStar Cebu is withholding the mother’s real name to protect the identity of the victim.
The Police’s Anti-Cybercrime Group 7 received a referral from the Australian Federal Police that the suspect had repeatedly exploited her two daughters online by sending sexually explicit images to an Australian in exchange for money sent by the Australian Stephen James Sheriff through money transfer.
The Queensland Police’s Task Force said the mother began sending sexually explicit images of her youngest child when the girl was only 10 years old.
Sheriff was convicted for soliciting and accessing child exploitative images and sentenced to serve less than three years in prison in Australia.
Interviewed after the rescue, the victim said she had been praying that the abuse would stop.
“Foreigners who purchase child exploitative images create the demand for the sexual abuse of poor Filipino children,” said lawyer John Tanagho, IJM Cebu field office director.
“It’s high time Australia toughened its laws against those who solicit and access child exploitative materials so that – secured behind bars – they can no longer traumatize Filipino children,” he said.
The arrest came after Regional Trial Court Judge Jose Nathaniel Andal issued a search warrant against Sheriff.
Police seized several smartphones and cellphones, which will be subjected to digital forensic examination.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development Region 7, Interagency Council Against Trafficking Region 7, and IJM helped carried out the operation.
Charges of violation of RA 9208 (Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act), RA 9975 (Anti-Child Pornography Act) in relation to RA 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act, and RA 7610 (Child Abuse) are being prepared against the suspect.