CHARGES were filed in court yesterday against the couple who exposed their 13-year-old daughter and two other minors to cyber-pornography inside their home in barangay Ibabao, Cordova town, Cebu.
Agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) brought the two suspects before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Mandaue City.
The couple will stay at the Cebu provincial jail in barangay Kalunasan in Cebu City while the charges are being resolved.
Cordova Mayor Adelino Sitoy called on the NBI to monitor money courier outlets and telecommunications companies that were used by cyber-sex dens to transact with foreign online clients.
The arrested husband, a former fisherman, and his wife will face trial for violating Republic Act 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, Republic Act 9775 or the Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2009, Republic Act 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act, as well as grave scandal in relation to the Electronic Commerce Act.
Since the three victims were minors, the offense falls under qualified trafficking, a non-bailable offense.
If convicted, the suspects face life imprisonment and a fine of P2 million to P5 million.
The couple were arrested by the NBI in a raid inside their home in sitio Sung-ok, barangay Ibabao in Cordova town, Cebu at 1 a.m. last Sunday.
The operation was carried out with the assistance of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, an agency under the Department of Homeland Security, and the International Justice Mission.
The NBI rescued the couple’s 13-year-old daughter and two children aged 14 and 17.
In an interview at the NBI stockade, the mother admitted to the crime saying her family needed the money after she and her husband stopped working.
Her husband advised her to stop the illegal activity but she didn’t pay attention to it.
IJM national director Andrey Sawchenko said they support the government’s campaign against human trafficking especially involving minors.
Msgr. Achilles Dakay, media liaison officer of the Cebu Archdiocese, urged everyone to strengthen family ties and marriages to avoid online sex predators.
Dakay also said poverty is never a reason for a person to commit sin.
“One should not use poverty as an excuse to do something bad. Here are several poor people who are doing good amid the difficulties in life,” he said.
Mayor Sitoy said money courier and telecom businesses should also be monitored for any involvement in the global sex trafficking trade.
He said the previous raids done by the NBI in barangays Cogon and Ibabao in 2011 resulted in the formation of a group that monitors cyber-sex dens in Cordova town.
He said some of these dens hide their modems or receivers to avoid detection.
Sitoy said he called on residents with Internet connections to register with the municipal hall but since it wasn’t compulsory, not everyone registered.
“We don’t have the capability to track these people unlike the NBI which has its cyber crimes unit,” Sitoy said.
He said the raids cost money along with assistance from the US agencies.
Insp. Alvin Balio, Cordova police chief, admitted they don’t have the technical ability to detect cyber sex dens.
He said not one resident went to their office to report the presence of these dens. With Correspondent Norman V. Mendoza