CEBU CITY, Philippines —The woman who was arrested for alleged online sexual abuse here denied the accusations against her.
The National Bureau of Investigation-Cebu District Office (NBI-CEBDO) has filed charges against the 25-year-old woman, who was arrested during an entrapment operation at her residence in Sitio San Pedro, Barangay Tisa, Cebu City last January 31, 2023.
Sheila, not her real name, admitted that she performs lewd acts for her clients in exchange for money and food. But she denied using her two young siblings for this illegal act.
CDN Digital opted not to divulge the woman’s identity to protect the victims, who are aged 20 and 15 years old.
The accused said this during an interview with the media at the NBI-CEBDO headquarters in Mandaue City on Tuesday, February 7, 2023, five days after she underwent an inquest proceeding before the Cebu City Prosecutor Office for violations of Qualified Trafficking in Persons.
No bail was recommended for this case.
According to the accused, poverty forced her to perform lewd acts in exchange for money.
Shiela said the highest payment she got from a client is P1,500.
“Depende sa [client]…kung unsay ganahan niya. Muhatag siya daan nako, di ko mo show og way kwarta. Naka suway ko na scam ko,” Sheila said.
(It depends on what the client wants. But he has to give the money first. I won’t show if there’s no money. I have been scammed before.)
She said she resorted to this illegal act this year and it has helped her in some ways such as when her brother died.
“Pagkamatay sa akoang maguwang, nakatabang sa lungon,” she said.
(When my brother died, it helped pay for his coffin.)
In its report, NBI-CEBDO said that they knew about the illegal activity through their random cyber patrolling. Using an undercover Facebook account of a foreign national, they communicated with Sheila.
Allegedly, Sheila performs these sexual acts with her siblings. While the undercover personnel communicates with Sheila, the latter allegedly offered to perform a ‘cam show’ with her two young female siblings. This is done via video call.
After they got this information, operatives conducted a series of surveillance on Sheila and found out that the woman has been engaged in offering pornographic stuff.
Hence, NBI-CEBDO, together with representatives of the Regional Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (RIACAT-7) and a social worker, carried out the entrapment operation past 3 p.m. on January 31, which resulted in the arrest of Sheila in her live-in partner’s residence in Barangay Tisa.
“It was agreed that we will be having our undercover agent online to wait for possible interaction with the perpetrator. Since during prior surveillance, the house was already identified so when there is a confirmation, the ground team would then proceed to the house and effect the arrest,” Agent Nino Rodriguez, the agent-on-case said.
The minor, who was not in the house at that time, is now under the guidance of the city’s social worker after she was found and rescued the next day.
Arnel Pura of the NBI-CEBDO appeals to the public to immediately report any knowledge of trafficking in their community so they can act on it and prevent perpetrators from abusing another individual.
/bmjo
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Woman from Tisa arrested for alleged online sexual abuse