Trinidad police probe porn ring

TRINIDAD – POLICE on Tobago have been called in to investigate a pornography ring said to be run by a group of students.

The students, some of whom are reported to be attending Scarborough Secondary, have allegedly been filming themselves in graphic sex acts at various locations using their cellular phones. The video clips are then being distributed to their friends via their phones. Some of the sex acts were even done in classrooms.{{more}}

One such video clip features a former student of Scarborough Secondary in her uniform, lifting her skirt and displaying her private parts in full view of the persons taking the shots. She later unbuttoned her shirt, lifted her bra and revealed her breast, all with a smiling face, asking the photographer if he wanted more.

Contacted on the matter Tuesday, Education Secretary, Claudia Groome-Duke, said the matter was now in the hands of the police.

However, she said she was aware of one such video. The student involved and her parents, she added, were currently undergoing counselling.

Groome-Duke said she felt hurt for the child, since she believed it was an adult who was taking advantage of the child.

She added that the Student Support Services had also been called in to investigate the matter, as it was felt the child and her friends would continue to be stigmatised by the video clips, which are almost on every pupil’s phone on the island. The video has also been transferred to adults, via Bluetooth, a method used to transfer data from one cellphone to another.

Groome-Duke called on parents to be more alert with regard to their children, noting they should scrutinise their bags before they leave home and cellular phones should also be investigated, as pictures are often taken and stored.

Asked whether she felt cellphones should be banned in schools totally, she said she did not consent to an all-out ban. She did, however, say some measures would be put in place to manage cellphones in schools and a policy would be developed. She said she would meet with principals on the island to discuss the matter on Friday.

(Trinidad Express)