New Delhi: Two days after an FIR was registered against an Instagram group for sharing obscene messages and morphed pictures of underage girls, the Delhi Police on Wednesday arrested its group admin. The Instagram group, Bois Locker Room, was highlighted by a twitter handle, which shared screenshots of the group chat, where members went to the extent of making plans to 'gang rape' the said minors.
The arrested group admin is a student of a school in Noida and had appeared for his class 12 examination this year. According to the police, he started the group in April. He initially added a few friends who later added others.
According to police, they have identified ten members of the group, of which six have completed 18 years of age. On Wednesday, probe began against four more adult members of the group.
Out of the ten members, those who are major are being examined by the police. "The minor members of the group are being dealt with as per the provisions of Juvenile Justice Act," said DCP Aynesh Roy.
The police apprehended a juvenile group member on Tuesday. In the presence of an NGO, family members and police, the juvenile revealed the group admin’s details. He also helped the police identify other members. He couldn’t be produced before the juvenile justice board due to lockdown but the parents have assured the he will remain in the city as long as the investigation goes on. Five more juveniles were questioned on Tuesday.
According to police sources, the adult group members are being called to the police station to join the probe while the juvenile members are being questioned at their home in the presence of the NGO and their family members.
"The Delhi Police Cyber Crime Cell have also written to Instagram asking for the information related the group and its members," Roy said. The social media organisation has not yet replied to the police and the report is still awaited. The police have also written to 21 members of the group to join the probe.
The police said that they got to know about the said Instagram group during social media monitoring. The Cyber Crime Cell noticed that the group was being used by its members to "share obscene messages and morphed pictures," Roy said.
The group had a total of 51 members, both majors and minors. They started sharing the photos that the girls would post on their feed and began exchanging morphed photos. In the group, one of the members was also found suggesting other members to call one of the girls, whose photo was shared, and "gang rape her".
After the screenshots of the group went viral, many members deleted their accounts, police said. Some of these people were also part of other groups on Instagram. These students are majorly from schools in South Delhi and Noida.
The devices used to engage in the offensive communication have been seized and sent for forensic analysis.
A senior officer of the Cyber Crime Cell said the investigation is underway and further action will be taken on the basis of material evidence that is gathered in course of investigation.
Meanwhile, Minister of State of Women and Child Development Debasree Chaudhuri on Wednesday said it is important to treat instances like 'Bois Locker Room' as direct case of online abuse.
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