Child crime: a network dismantled, their extortion and abuse practices exposed

A group of child criminals was arrested dismantledé by French law enforcement. The case is very significant: more than 120 victims, nearly a million pieces of illegal content and six arrests.

For several months, the Orleans research section had been investigating this pedocriminal group. Already during 2022, as part of regular monitoring of groups present on social networks, gendarmes had spotted several Internet users who were chatting in French. Photos of children in swimsuits or dancing were, for example, posted. discoveries, "disturbing content which can constitute a bundle of clues", as how' an investigator according to BFMTV. Nevertheless, such sharing still remained legal.

Subsequently, one of the members of these groups launched invitations to exchange in an encrypted Russian messaging service called ICQ. It is on this platform that child pornography content began. &agrav; circulate. The investigators then succeeded in solving the problem. Join this group to discover the photos and videos exchanged. They then quickly understand how the participants go about it: they create their own content, notably by pretending to be teenagers on social networks.

"As part of these links, these men arrive à retrieve a photo of these teenagers. If the emotional bond breaks, they use this photo to do sextortion and obtain other content, added the investigator. Some would even have simulated this. suicide attempts to push the child or adolescent to commit suicide send images. Some young people would even have been victims of sexual assault to produce content.

Analyses still in progress

In total, 930,000 pieces of child pornography content were released. found on computer equipment. In addition, 120 French-speaking victims were arrested. listed including 22 French. According to France Inter, they are 3 & 15 years old. Since April 2023, the arrests have continued. To date, six men have already been arrested. été arrests, the last of which began in February, in the context of this case. They are between 36 and 61 years old, some are fathers of families and several of them were already ; known for similar acts. One of the arrested is the administrator of the group on Russian messaging. 

According to the national gendarmerie for the AFP, some were é indicted for rape of a minor under 15 and recourse à prostitution of minors. However, the investigation continues, with investigators fearing that there may be other victims. , content is still being analyzed.