Cybersex operators hop around, offer parents P1,000-P2,000

Five more operators of home-based cybersex dens are being watched in Cordova town, said barangay Cogon captain Andres Dinoy.

He said clandestine operators keep moving around, looking for remote sitios where their activities won’t be noticed.

Tuesday’s police raid of a household in purok Talong in barangay Cogon resulted in the rescue of three girls aged 9, 12 and 17.

The children were caught performing naked in front of web camera, with a mother of two of the girls calmly watching, as two women “coached” their moves.

Dinoy said the raid by provincial police intelligence agents was long overdue since the trend of online porn was noticed since 2006.

“We have a hard time catching them because the targets are not Internet cafes, but private houses. We can’t go in without a search warrant,” Dinoy told Cebu Daily News.

Charges of qualified human trafficking will be filed against the house owner, who was not around, and the operator, who slipped out the backdoor before police arrived.

Over the years, said Dinoy, online porn operators have found ways to coopt the parents.

They used to fetch children from schools and lure them with candy to persuade the kids to strip in front of a webcam.

When parents found out and complained to barangay officials, operators changed tactics.

They would ask the permission of parents and offer a commission of P1,000 to P2,000 for the child’s performance, Dinoy said.

The money is sent by clients abroad through Western Union money transfer. Regular customers send payment direct to the operator’s account.

Dinoy said the online porn enterprise was easy money for operators, who could earn P10,000 toP20,000 for arranging a minor’s performance.

Operators have been hopping from one site to another to stay unnoticed because some residents squeal on them, said Dinoy.

“This can’t stay secret long because neighbors talk. So operators keep moving around, looking for places that are remote and quiet,” he said.

Tuesday’s arrest of a mother, who is an ice candy vendor, and two other women in purok Talong, barangay Cogon, may force operators to lie low for now, said Dinoy.

The sitio has small houses built close to each other but neighbors of the raided house told CDN they didn’t notice any unusual goings on .“We seldom see people there. They’re new,” said one woman.

Cordova parish priest of San Roque, Fr. Alvin Lao, said cyberporn operators “should stop before it’s too late; otherwise, bagsak sila sa kulungan ug kastigo sa Diyos.”

He said parents who consent to this form of exploitation “want an easy life without any sacrifice.”

Fr. Lao said the social problem couldn’t be solved overnight and that he’s been struggling against computer-based porn activities in the parish since 2006 in Cordova. /Reporter Jucell Marie P. Cuyos