Aussie sex predator falls; minor rescued

MANILA, Philippines – The authorities rescued a 13-year-old girl in Gapan City, Nueva Ecija who almost fell victim to a suspected Australian sex predator nabbed on Monday.

Farhanipour Gholamreza, 50, was about to leave the Philippines on Monday when he was arrested by the operatives of the Philippine National Police-Women and Children Protection Center-Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division (PNP-WCPC-ATIPD).

The agency arrested Gholamreza, a naturalized Australian, with the assistance of the Office of Cybercrime of the Department of Justice (DOJ-OOC), the Bureau of Immigration, the Aviation Security Group, the Australian Federal Police and the International Justice Mission.

The arrest came after receiving a report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

NCMEC is a US-based non-profit organization which helps identify and rescue victims of child pornography and child sexual exploitation around the world, including the Philippines.

Based on investigation, Gholamreza arrived in the Philippines from Sydney on August 19 to meet the minor he met through Facebook, which was instrumental in uncovering his scheme.

Facebook scans pages for child porn and missing children which is then reported to NCMEC and other appropriate agencies. 

Lure scheme

During chat sessions with the 13-year-old victim, the Australian allegedly lured the minor to send explicit photos of herself via private messages with the promise of sending money.

The Australian Federal Police later on discovered that the suspect had two recorded transactions of money sent to the Philippines in August via Western Union, totaling AUD 200.6 or about P7,000.

The money was traced to have been received by the victim’s mother, a resident of Barangay Maburak, Gapan City, Nueva Ecija.

Rescue and arrest

Acting on the report, agents of the DOJ-OOC in coordination with operatives of the PNP-WCPC-ATIPD and social workers from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) arranged a meeting with the victim in a mall in Gapan City, Nueva Ecija on August 23.

Posing as Gholamreza’s friend, one of the agents negotiated with the minor and transferred P1,000 to the victim’s mother to facilitate a supposed meeting with the suspect.

Agents conducted surveillance at the remittance center where the victim’s mother, together with the minor and her grandmother, collected the money.

The authorities immediately rescued the minor and was placed under the protective custody of the DSWD for psychosocial counseling and after-care services.

The police is now in custody of Gholamreza who was nabbed at the NAIA Terminal 1 on Monday.

Investigation of the Australia Federal Police showed that the suspect traveled to the Philippines 15 times in a span of one and a half years. Other countries visited include China, Singapore and Thailand.

Gholamreza underwent inquest proceeding on Tuesday at the DOJ. He will face charges for violation of Republic Act 9775 or the Anti-Child Pornography Act and RA 9208 or the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act.