back to article Sexploitation gang thrown in clink for 171 years after 'hunting' kids online and luring them in front of webcams

Four men have joined their two accomplices behind bars for tricking young girls into performing sex acts online so they could film them. The six were charged in Michigan, USA, with 28 counts [PDF] of producing and viewing child abuse images, engaging in a child exploitation enterprise, conspiracy to access with intent to view …

  1. FozzyBear
    Happy

    It's rare these days to praise law enforcement. In this instance, though, nicely done to those that were able to track down, arrest and successfully prosecute the slime involved.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Childcatcher

    The fiends

    Windows 10 users too, no doubt.

    1. TonyJ
      FAIL

      Re: The fiends

      "...Windows 10 users too, no doubt..."

      Not everything should be turned into a frigging war on OS choice dumbass.

      How about some empathy for the victims? Or a bit of praise for once for how law enforcement handled it? Nah..f*ck that, lets flame the OS.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Mushroom

      Re: The fiends

      "Windows 10 users too, no doubt.

      Oh just fuck off.

    3. Danny 14

      Re: The fiends

      i thought linux had webcams and browsers? my kids laptops have linux and webcams. not sure i get your w10 comment.....

  3. imanidiot Silver badge

    171 years collectively... IMHO they should have received that EACH. Let's see what their fellow inmates have to say about their crimes. I've heard child molesters receive a particularly "warm welcome".

    1. ElReg!comments!Pierre

      'z that incitation / apology of violence and / or abuse? Sentence the scum, OK. No need to call for more.

      1. imanidiot Silver badge

        I'm not calling for more. I'm not condoning it. I'm just saying they might get more than they might like in that 35 years.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    'Cap' is a short for 'capture' where a screen capture program is used to grab the webcam feed and convert it into an MPEG video

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Joke

      MPEG?

      What is this 1999?

      1. kain preacher

        Pssst H.264 is mpeg-4 part 10

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Joke

          Shhh, propriety CODEC's are illegal in Reg forums.

          1. kain preacher

            So I shouldn't mention that digital tv is mpeg ?

  5. bombastic bob Silver badge
    Devil

    interesting how they got their material

    it IS kind of interesting how they got their material, by essentially manipulating random rebellious teen girls and encouraging them to do something a little crazy in front of a webcam, etc..

    It's the old 'confidence' game, basically. Only instead of 3 card monty, it's "full monty".

    parents should educate their children about the ways of the world, and stop 'helicoptering' them. explaining how con games work might help them to avoid such situations. "If he says he's a teenage boy, or even a teenage girl, it's probably a middle-aged pervert". stuff like that. "don't be a victim". street smarts.

    [you can't watch over them 7/24, so give them to tools to watch themselves, instead]

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: interesting how they got their material

      Don't get me wrong they are still manipulative creeps, but at least there's no indication (that I've read so far) that they took the "next step" and used their initial videos to blackmail victims for more. That's all too common and a whole 'nother level of evil.

      1. Danny 14

        Re: interesting how they got their material

        this is done in school. BBC have good videos and educational kit. the plod also have a digital unit that go to schools. my two said it was ok too.

        1. Hans 1

          Re: interesting how they got their material

          I don't rely on schools for this ... my kids all get to use the interwebs starting at age 4, a time when you are not taught this stuff at school.

          My kids know how to use Linux, macOS, and Windows, iOS, Android and BB10 (obsolete) ... depending on age, they are not allowed to go into chat rooms ... the teens get briefed, even the boy, and are allowed into chatrooms ... facebook is not allowed ... I do not have webcams on the systems they use, but the 15yo has one and they have used it to see family - they know how it works ... I told them that one can easily fake live re-transmissions with videos ...

          I have also told them that some youtube videos are not for them, they understand, and I trust them to skip a video not for them ... they know trust is paramount, here.

          BTW, my 4yo is a Minecraft wizard ... youtube to look at houses, then re-constructs them in Minecraft ... so much so the 11yo is impressed ...

  6. Cynic_999

    Needs more education

    It needs a few fictional depictions of this sort of thing being shown on soaps and films popular with teenagers. It's sad that there are still youngsters with years of online experience who do not realize that anything embarrassing, demeaning or sexual that someone else persuades them to do on webcam is being recorded and will end up being widely distributed.

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