42 yr old Tamilian arrested for possessing and circulating child porn

Tiruchirapalli: The city police on Thursday arrested a 42-year-old person for downloading, uploading and circulating child pornography to his contacts through the social media.

City police commissioner V Varadharaju told newsmen that Christopher Alphonse, a native of Khajapet locality here was arrested under Sections 67 (A) (B) of the Information Technology Act along with relevant provisions of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. 

This is the first time that Tamil Nadu police has invoked provisions under these amended Acts to curb child pornography, following a report received from United States that child pornography is higher in India. The Union Home Ministry had provided a list of those who have seen pornographic films, including IP addresses to the respective States for legal action.

Mr Varadharaju said Alphonse, who is working as AC mechanic was summoned by the police on a specific input from the Centre. It was found that he had deleted the porn contents from his mobile phone and other electronic storage devices. But, however the investigators from cyber cell retrieved the child porn films forwarded to the contacts by Alphonse from his Facebook Messenger account.

The accused was addicted to child pornography and confessed to the police that many of his friends and contacts to whom he circulated the porn videos were also addicts' pornography.  He had been downloading pornographic contents for four years and created Facebook IDs under fake names Nilavan, Adhavan and Valavan and circulated the videos to his contacts.

He was produced before the Mahila court here and remanded in judicial custody till December 26.

The cyber wing police would carry out detailed probe into the case and seek the assistance of Forensic Lab at Chennai to find out whether Alphonse had modified or added anything in the porn contests which he had circulated in the social media platform. Investigations were also on to find out the persons to whom Alphonse had circulated the porn videos, he said.

Tamil Nadu Additional Director General of Police (Crime) M Ravi, who also heads the Crime against Women and Children unit, had recently said the State police had received more than thousand IP addresses of those watch child pornography in Tamil Nadu and if convicted, such offenders would get three to seven years of jail term.

The inputs on possession and circulation of child pornography received from Central agencies were being forwarded to police Commissioners and Superintendents of Police for appropriate action. Chennai reportedly topped the list of people watching child pornography in India.(UNI)