CIDG probes molestation video

CEBU, Philippines — The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG)-7 will investigate a video that has gone viral on social media, which reportedly shows an unconscious woman getting molested inside a car by a group of men.

The suspects allegedly are students of a university in Cebu City.

The video shows a group of male friends taking a “groufie” inside a car with one of them undressing and touching an unconscious woman at the back seat with the rest cheering him on.

An ID sling one of the men is wearing made those who saw the video conclude they come from the university indicated in the sling.

Police said the university’s chief legal counsel is verifying with the school’s registrar if the men in the video are indeed enrolled in the university.

The video was reportedly posted by one of the men in the video but has since been taken down.

Police Regional Office-7 Director Debold Sinas said they are now identifying the people in the video, taking off from the names provided in the video’s comments section.

“We’ll just investigate what really happened. Kuhaon sa namo ang identities sa mga tawo nga involved ato (We will investigate what really happened. We will identify the people involved),” Sinas said.

He also urged the girl and her family to file a formal complaint.

“Kung gusto nila, diri sa among opisina, pero the best nga adtoan nila is kining atong city director sa Cebu City, kay kabalo mo, kining si Colonel Gemma Vinluan, usa sa iyang mga expertise is women’s desk concern (They can file with us if they want but the best office to file the complaint with is the Cebu City Police Office. You see, one of city director Gemma Vinluan’s expertise is women’s concerns),” Sinas said.

If proven, the men will face charges for violating the cybercrime law and Anti-Photo and Video Voyeurism Act of 2009, which penalizes the act of taking photo or video coverage of a person or group of persons performing a sexual act or any similar activity or of capturing an image of the private area of a person or persons without the latter's consent. (FREEMAN)