Dubai Police save children from extortion on Fortnite

Dubai - The police laid out a plan, caught the student, and revealed the truth in front of his family.

The Dubai Police have rescued more than 10 children, aged 9 to 10, from extortion on multi-player video game Fortnite after a college student took advantage of the in-game chat rooms.

Investigations revealed that the 25-year-old student would ask the children to send him their personal photos in return for money so they can get higher scores in the game. After receiving the photos, the student would blackmail and exhort the kids.

Acting on a report received from a child's mother, the police devised a plan, caught the student, and revealed the truth in front of his family - who were shocked to see their son involved in the criminal act.

Brigadier Jamal Salem Al Jallaf, director-general of the Criminal Investigation Department at the Dubai Police, said that the accused coaxed the children to send him their inappropriate photos.

Al Jallaf said that a child told about the matter to his mother, who reported it on the eCrime platform, and the police reached the accused in no time. The accused student had 200 photos of more than 10 children.

Al Jallaf said that in such cases, the culprit should be punished with imprisonment and fine that is not less than Dh250,000 and doesn't exceed Dh1 million, or either of the two. If the victim is below 18 years, the jail term won't be less than five years.

He said that the Dubai Police worked with the complainant to protect the privacy of the children and their families.

The Dubai Police have recently joined an international team established by the FBI to prevent cyber crimes against children, using the most recent technologies, programmes and a database that contains important information, he added.

• Dubai