Cracking the whip on perverts

Leaving no room for manoeuvre, the Chennai Police are hunting down child porn consumers and virtual vultures who are using the dark web to fulfill their fantasies.

The recent arrest of 49-year-old Sumit Kumar Kalra, a gym equipment dealer in Egmore sent shockwaves across the city as Sumit’s family is well known in the circle of North Indians in Chennai. He was arrested at Chennai airport on Saturday night for downloading child porn and disseminating it online and on social media.

The Crime against Women and Children wing headed by Deputy Commissioner, the no-nonsense H. Jayalakshmi, nabbed him at the airport. The Chennai Police teams acted swiftly on the information received from the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, which has the technology to monitor child pornography material shared online.

The Crime Against Women and Children wing of the Chennai Police have intensified their tech-drive to remain vigilant and reactive to any posts veering towards child sexual abuse and are taking every measure to keep children safe from predators. The child porn ring is a well-networked one with perpetrators using the dark web browsers to remain anonymous.

Speaking of deviant crimes, H. Jayalakshmi says, “We have a zero tolerance to any kind of sexual assault against children. No one will be spared in our efforts to make Chennai a safe environment for children. I cannot disclose more at this stage but I can assure you that the Chennai Police is doing everything it can and should to ensure these perpetrators do not get away.”

The various departments of TN Police and the cyber cell in particular are all working in tandem with their Chennai counterparts to nab culprits from any anonymous spot they’re hiding in. All gadgets like iPads, tablets, mobile phones and desktops are under the scanner to trace those making, circulating and consuming child pornography.

Sources in the police department also reveal that the Commissioner of Police, Mr. A.K. Viswanathan is monitoring the situation round-the-clock and keeping the government informed. Secretariat sources reveal that the Chief Minister Mr. Edapadi Palanisamy has given the police department all the powers they need to prosecute and investigate such paedophiles.

Sources close to Sumit Kalra reveal that “He was a regular family man and exhibited no signs of being into children.” This further highlights the fact that there is no sketch of how a child molester looks.

From police files

i). On 22.12.2019 the accused Mohan forcefully showed a pornographic video to two girls of a city college. He was arrested and the process initiated to detain him.

ii). One Magesh Kumar created a fake account on Instagram and captured obscene videos of a 16-year-old girl and threatened her saying he would upload the videos on social media. He was arrested by arranging a decoy.

iii). One Palayam alias Ravi forced a 14-year-old girl to view child pornography on his smart phone on 04.01.2020 near her house. He was arrested and detained under Act 14 of 1982.

iv). Sai alias Raja Shiva Sundar secretly captured obscene scenes of a 14-year-old girl and threatened her to yield or otherwise he would upload the obscene photos and videos in social media. He was arrested.

v). One Sumit Kumar Kalra downloaded and viewed banned child pornography on 29.04.2019 and shared and circulated to several persons. He has used the dark and deep web to surf for banned child pornographic visuals. He has been arrested.