Foreign agencies share list of people who download child porn

Foreign law enforcement agencies that monitor social media sites for child pornography have shared information with Maldives police regarding people based in Maldives who have downloaded pornographic content, including photos and videos, of children.

In a press briefing on Sunday, Acting Head of Crimes Against Children Department, Chief Inspector of Police Ahmed Sofwath Rauf, said the police opened two investigations in connection to the information shared by the foreign agencies.

The police have finished the investigation into one of the cases and forwarded it to the Prosecutor General’s Office for charges, while the investigation into the other case remains in progress.

“We are investigating these cases involving the download of photos and videos of children using various social media applications from Maldives-based IDs and numbers as serious crimes,” said Sofwath.

According to Sofwath, the victims in the cases appear as young as two years old.

He said that the police have arrested a 32-year-old male in connection to the case, but declined to disclose any details.

Sofwath said the police have conducted training programs in collaboration with foreign agencies to boost the Maldives police’s capacity to investigate such cases.