Punjab Police’s cybercrime division has made a significant breakthrough by arresting two individuals and identifying 33 suspects involved in viewing, transmitting, and distributing child sexual exploitative and abusive material (CSEAM) through various online platforms. The announcement was made by Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav on Friday.
The extensive operation, codenamed CSEAM-4, was conducted on Thursday across 40 locations in 18 districts and three commissionerates. It was launched following actionable cyber tip-offs from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
According to the Supreme Court’s recent judgment, viewing, possessing, or failing to report child sexual exploitative content is punishable under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. CSEAM includes any form of media that sexually exploits minors and is considered a grave form of child abuse due to its long-lasting impact on victims.
The arrested individuals are Akash Babu from Rajasthani Colony in Khanna and Harpreet Singh from Burmajra village in Morinda, Rupnagar.
DGP Yadav stated that the state cybercrime cell conducted a thorough analysis of digital evidence from platforms including WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram to track down offenders.
Under the guidance of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Cybercrime V Neeraja, field teams carried out coordinated raids, leading to the registration of two FIRs and the seizure of 34 mobile phones, now undergoing forensic examination to recover deleted data. Authorities expect more arrests in connection with this case.
ADGP V Neeraja emphasized that cyber tip-offs primarily arise from suspicious activities on social media and messaging platforms, which assist in identifying and apprehending offenders engaged in CSEAM crimes.
