SINGAPORE: The police have arrested 11 men in Singapore who are among more than 300 people nabbed in a cross-border operation targeting online child sexual exploitation.
The four-week operation involved the police in Singapore, Brunei, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand.
Between Mar 23 and Apr 17, officers raided 382 locations in the seven regions, arresting 326 people, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said in a news release on Tuesday (Apr 28).
Another 119 people, including 16 in Singapore, are assisting with investigations.
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"The 445 arrested and investigated persons comprise 430 men and 15 women, aged between 12 and 72," SPF said.
The authorities also seized electronic devices, including 116 computers, 340 mobile phones, 25 electronic tablets, 140 storage devices and 16 routers, along with child sexual abuse materials and obscene content.
"Such offences are often facilitated through digital platforms and cross-border financial channels. Hence, a close partnership with industry partners is critical," SPF added.
The Singapore police said that they worked closely with technology companies, financial institutions and non-governmental organisations during this operation.
The 11 men arrested in Singapore are aged between 22 and 44.
Those arrested, and the 16 people assisting with investigations, are suspected of:
Early investigations found that eight of them knowingly accessed, downloaded and possessed child sexual abuse materials through online messaging platforms and "peer-to-peer services", SPF said.
In one case, the police investigated two men, aged 26 and 28, for making cross-border payments to access obscene materials through a Telegram channel.
This came after they received information from Malaysia's police that a person was allegedly selling such materials to people in Singapore.
Another man was arrested in March, and the authorities found materials involving two victims of sexual exploitation on his devices.
The victims had been sexually exploited by someone overseas through an online platform. This case came up through a referral from a non-governmental organisation.
The Singapore police worked with overseas law enforcement to identify the offender and arrested him on Mar 27.
Images of another potential victim were also found on his devices, and investigations are ongoing, they added.
Anyone convicted of producing child abuse material may be jailed for up to 10 years and be liable to a fine or caning.
Anyone who knowingly possesses or gains access to child abuse material may be jailed for five years upon conviction and be fined or caned.
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The four-week operation involved the police in Singapore, Brunei, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand.
Between Mar 23 and Apr 17, officers raided 382 locations in the seven regions, arresting 326 people, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said in a news release on Tuesday (Apr 28).
Another 119 people, including 16 in Singapore, are assisting with investigations.
CNA Games
Show More Show Less
"The 445 arrested and investigated persons comprise 430 men and 15 women, aged between 12 and 72," SPF said.
The authorities also seized electronic devices, including 116 computers, 340 mobile phones, 25 electronic tablets, 140 storage devices and 16 routers, along with child sexual abuse materials and obscene content.
"Such offences are often facilitated through digital platforms and cross-border financial channels. Hence, a close partnership with industry partners is critical," SPF added.
The Singapore police said that they worked closely with technology companies, financial institutions and non-governmental organisations during this operation.
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ARRESTS IN SINGAPORE
The 11 men arrested in Singapore are aged between 22 and 44.
Those arrested, and the 16 people assisting with investigations, are suspected of:
- Producing, possessing, gaining access to and distributing child sexual abuse
- Sexual communication with a minor
- Committing offences relating to commercial sex with minors
- Threatening to distribute intimate images or recordings
- Transmitting and selling of obscene materials
- Possessing obscene films
Early investigations found that eight of them knowingly accessed, downloaded and possessed child sexual abuse materials through online messaging platforms and "peer-to-peer services", SPF said.
In one case, the police investigated two men, aged 26 and 28, for making cross-border payments to access obscene materials through a Telegram channel.
This came after they received information from Malaysia's police that a person was allegedly selling such materials to people in Singapore.
Another man was arrested in March, and the authorities found materials involving two victims of sexual exploitation on his devices.
The victims had been sexually exploited by someone overseas through an online platform. This case came up through a referral from a non-governmental organisation.
The Singapore police worked with overseas law enforcement to identify the offender and arrested him on Mar 27.
Images of another potential victim were also found on his devices, and investigations are ongoing, they added.
Anyone convicted of producing child abuse material may be jailed for up to 10 years and be liable to a fine or caning.
Anyone who knowingly possesses or gains access to child abuse material may be jailed for five years upon conviction and be fined or caned.
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