Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has arrested 9 people including the founder of an international Telegram group called ‘Pompom’. The gang has been blackmailing thousands of teenagers for a long time and demanding money along with pictures and videos of their intimate moments. Besides, CID also claimed that they have grabbed crores of rupees by selling these pictures and videos.
CID chief Additional IGP Mohammad Ali Mia gave this information in a press conference organized at Malibagh CID office on Monday (May 22).
The arrested are the founder of ‘Pompom’ group Mark-Zuckerberg alias Abu Sayem, Shahriar Afsan Avro, Bogdadi Shakeel, DTR Shubo alias Moshiur Rahman, Md. Jaseem, Cactus aka Ketan Chakma, El Dorado aka Shahed, Turya aka Maruf and Mia Bhai aka Nazmul Samrat.
The CID chief said that teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18 used to keep parents awake at night talking about freelancing. Parents were sure their children were freelancing. But under the guise of freelancing, they were forced to give pictures and videos of intimate moments.
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The victims complained that their Facebook, Instagram IDs were hacked and blackmailed with their secret photos and videos on Telegram group named ‘Pompom’ and demanded money. If they could not pay, they would come on video calls and force them to do offensive scenes. If they did not respond to any proposal, the circle would make it viral in the Telegram groups of millions of subscribers along with the names and personal information of the victims.
Additional IGP Mohammad Ali Mia said, “We can see that the group not only collects money from victims by threatening to make offensive videos go viral, but the gang also earns crores of rupees by selling those videos at home and abroad.” A large number of buyers from countries like Middle East, Singapore, Malaysia, Portugal, Canada, America and England have become members of PomPom Group by paying a subscription fee of Rs.1000 to Rs.2000 per month. They buy and store content that is offensive to young girls.
He said the circle was led by a man named Mark-Zuckerberg. In the beginning it was not easy to identify this very clever person. Mark’s real name is Abu Sayem. Bekar Sayem lives in Chittagong. According to NID, he is 20 years old. He has done Diploma in Electrical from Shyamoli Polytechnic Institute and Chittagong. Information of crores of rupees transactions is available in his various accounts.
The CID chief said that in the meantime, a victim has filed a case against Mark-Zuckerberg and his team under the Pornography and Digital Security Act at DMP’s Tejgaon Shilpanchal police station for spreading intimate pictures of him and his lover on Pompom group.
The police officer said that with the help of information technology, Mark alias Sayem was arrested in the Lalkhan Bazar area of Chittagong. According to the information provided by Mark, two of his close friends, Shahriar Afsan Avro, were arrested from the housing area of Chittagong and Bogdadi Shakeel from Ukhia.
Additional IGP Mohammad Ali Mia said, Mark alias Saim’s mobile phone was searched and the Mark-Zuckerberg ID was found logged in. By interrogating him, the real names and identities of the admins of all the channels and groups of Pompom Group are found. Admin’s job was to create new content for Mark. Once they used to hack Facebook or Instagram ID of target by making fake NID to get new content.
He also said that the ex-boyfriends of the victimized girls used to give new content to the Pompom group. In other words, the intimate moments of the lover they captured on camera were given to Mark-Zuckerberg’s group. Mark used his admins to take pictures from those Facebook IDs and make 30-40 second promos and upload them to the groups. After watching the promo, those who wanted to watch the full version had to go for the premium group of Rs 1,000 to 2,000.
The CID chief said that Mark alias Saim, Avro and Shakeel were interrogated and the real identities of the admins of various pages of Mark-Zuckerberg were recovered by searching their devices. His most trusted and important associate is DTR Shubo aka Moshiur Rahman. Moshiur was tasked with subtly saving content from the group and seducing the girls to capture intimate moments of their videos. Moshiur works in a fishing company in Chittagong. After confirming his location, he was arrested from Karnaphuli area. His accomplice Jasim was also arrested.
Regarding the interrogation of Sayem and Moshiur, the CID chief said that many of the administrators of these adult groups are staying in Dhaka. As a result, they set up a get together at a restaurant in the Bailey Road area. Stepping into the trap, Admin Cactus alias Ketan Chakma, El Dorado alias Shahed, Turya alias Maruf and Mia Bhai alias Nazmul Samrat were arrested one by one. CID has so far arrested 19 people in this incident.
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The number of subscribers to the groups and channels of Mark-Zuckerberg and his associates is about 400,000. They contain 20,000 offensive videos and about 30,000 content.
On the other hand, about 750 people from home and abroad have become members of their premium group by paying a fee of 1,000 to 2,000 taka per month. We got their details. Working on them too. No exemption will be granted to anyone involved in the sale and purchase of adult content to minors.
The CID chief said that there is also a plan to investigate money laundering in this incident. He mentioned that not only the owners of the Telegram cycle, but also their associates spread across the country and abroad by following the money can be brought under the law.
The CID head informed all the parents and said, talking to the victims of this incident, we felt that they had made a mistake by being caught on camera and exchanging it, and they did not have a reliable person by their side in the difficult time of danger. As a result, being minors, they could not take recourse to any law.
TT/EA/ASM
Tags: Intimate photos videos thousands girls Pompom group arrested
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