NEWS
19-year-old Internet blackmailer arrested by police
Police have arrested a 19-year-old boy for his involvement in a case of online extortion committed using a popular social networking website.
On Feb 19, 2012, a 17-year-old boy lodged a police report stating that someone whom he had befriend online had extorted money from him.
Preliminary investigations revealed that sometime in January 2012, the victim had befriended the suspect, who posed as a female, on a popular social networking website.
In the course of their interactions, the victim was persuaded to pose naked on webcam.
Unknown to him, the suspect had recorded the resulting footage.
The suspect then demanded that the victim transfer $500 to him and threatened to circulate the footage online if the victim refused.
After an extensive investigation, the identity of the suspect was established and he was subsequently arrested on May 15, 2012.
Investigations into the case are ongoing.
If found guilty, the suspect faces a prison term of up to seven years as well as caning.
The police reminded the public to exercise caution when dealing with strangers over the Internet.
They also cautioned the public to adopt certain crime prevention measures, such as being wary of messages from strangers who want to be friends, and not acceding to requests that may put you in a vulnerable position during online interactions, such as performing compromising acts on webcam.
The police also advised members of the public to inform them immediately if anyone attempts to extort money from them.
| Previous case of naked video chat scam Click on thumbnail to view (Photos: SPF, TNP, ST, Wanbao, Internet) |
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