CBI files charge sheet in child abuse case, international links suspected

Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], September 8 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday filed a charge sheet against an accused in a case related to possession of a huge quantity of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM).
CBI filed the charge sheet before the Protection of Children against Sexual Offences (POCSO) Court in the Varanasi district of Uttar Pradesh.
He was also booked under other related offences like collection, transmission or publishing of Child CSAM.
The accused has been identified as Ravi Kumar Patel, a resident of the Madhvan area of Varanasi. He was arrested based on the inputs from Singapore regarding the transmission and publication of Child abuse Material from a location in Varanasi.
CBI had registered a case against the accused on the allegations of collection, transmission and publishing of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), depicting children in a sexually explicit manner.
During the investigation, searches were conducted at his residence which led to the recovery of electronic devices. A huge quantity of Child Sexual Abuse Material(CSAM) including photos and videos of the victim, was also found in the electronic devices of the accused, which were recovered from his possession.
"CBI has recovered more than 2,000 video clips and 7,000 photographs of Child abuse from the possession of an arrested person. The recovered material includes pictures and videos of foreign kids," said an official.
CBI also arrested the accused on July 13 this year and he was remanded to Judicial Custody by the Competent Court.
During the investigation, a minor victim was traced. It was found that she was sexually abused and harassed by the accused since the year 2019.
It was further alleged that the accused used to take photos and videos of sexually abusive activities. The accused also used to threaten and blackmail the victim.
After a thorough investigation, a charge sheet was filed.