Skardu man held over abuse videos of his own children

A man from Skardu has been arrested on allegations that he produced sexually explicit videos of his own young children and sold them through secret Telegram groups paid for in cryptocurrency, the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency said.

NCCIA Additional Director Mohammad Shoaib Khan told a press conference in Islamabad on Sunday that it was the first case in Pakistan in which a father had been found allegedly involved in such offences against his own children. He said a group had formed around circulating and selling the videos.

The reports of the conference differed on the children's ages: TechJuice said they were four and five, while Geo News reported five and six.

According to TechJuice, Khan said the man was the alleged ringleader of the network and was arrested with international assistance. Investigators also found videos showing sexual abuse of animals during the probe, he said. Leads had come from Islamabad, Multan and southern Punjab, and raids were under way to arrest other members.

In a second case, the agency arrested four people accused of belonging to a separate network that befriended children aged between six and 14 on Instagram and lured them into making indecent videos that were then sold abroad. About 60 such videos were recovered from a phone, TechJuice reported.

A third case saw the NCCIA trace and arrest a main suspect in Islamabad within hours after a minor girl from Karachi attempted suicide following two to three years of harassment and blackmail. The agency acted with the help of the girl's family, according to TechJuice.

Khan said the agency would also take action against parents who learn of crimes involving their children but fail to report them, Geo News reported. He announced an awareness campaign at universities and schools, beginning in Islamabad and later expanding nationwide, to teach parents how to monitor what their children watch on mobile phones. He advised people not to share one-time passwords, PINs or bank details, warning that fake banking websites had been created that look identical to genuine ones.

Separately, the agency said it had uncovered three companies in Karachi accused of using children to produce animated pornographic material for clients in the United States and Germany. Deputy Director Shehzad Akbar said 42 people had been taken into custody, of whom 13 were formally arrested and remanded by a court, and that one person was allegedly behind all three firms. Director Tariq Nawaz told Geo News that the companies also blackmailed clients after selling them the material.

Khan also said that seven FIRs had been registered over call centres in Islamabad and between 13,000 and 14,000 devices recovered, and that Chinese nationals arrested in Pakistan would serve their sentences under Pakistani law before their visas were cancelled and they were deported, Geo News reported.

NCCIA Director General Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi separately directed officials to adopt a zero-tolerance approach towards harassment of citizens, particularly women and children, and ordered strict monitoring of accounts spreading fake news, propaganda against state institutions and content meant to cause fear.

Victims of cybercrime can lodge complaints on the NCCIA helpline 1799, which operates 24 hours a day.