Alleged online ‘groomers’ targeting minors uncovered by NBI

National

AN ALLEGED online group targeting minors for violent acts has emerged in the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) probe into recent school violence, officials said on Tuesday, Aug. 25.

NBI Director Melvin Matibag said investigators had identified a group of supposed “groomers” who allegedly recruit minors and encourage them to carry out violent or illegal activities.

At a press briefing, Matibag said the group operates through a group chat and targets individuals aged 12 to 19. He said the alleged groomers initially build rapport with their targets, examine their personal and family backgrounds, and assess their capabilities before teaching them how to commit violent acts.

In a separate ambush interview, Matibag said the group chat has approximately 1,000 members, mostly Filipinos, although some are from other countries.

The NBI is investigating whether the alleged network had any connection to the Aug. 18 shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University (AdZU), where a 14-year-old Grade 8 male student shot and killed a 15-year-old Grade 10 male student before turning the gun on himself.

The student also streamed the incident on Facebook Live. Authorities reported the livestream to Meta, Facebook’s parent company, five minutes after it was detected, but the video remained online for another nine minutes before it was removed.

According to Matibag, the alleged group requires members to undergo an “initiation” involving violent or illegal acts, including bomb-making. He said members are allegedly taught that completing such tasks could lead to promotion within the group and that some are encouraged to believe that carrying out an assigned task before dying by suicide could lead to “sainthood.”

“It’s like an initiation. You will be promoted. You’re taught—there’s this like bible that if you do it, you’ll be promoted,” he said in an Inquirer.net report.

The NBI is verifying whether the group is connected to the AdZU shooting and other recent school violence. Investigators will also profile people who shared the student’s livestream to determine who may have been watching or involved.

Matibag said he would meet Meta representatives in Singapore on Thursday with officials from the Office of the President, Office of the Speaker, Department of Information and Communications Technology and Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center to seek assistance in the probe.

Authorities are also examining the possible influence of violent video games and extremist online groups after reports that some perpetrators may have been influenced by people they met online.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is open to proposals to ban Facebook and other platforms if they fail to address content that could encourage violence among young people and contribute to fake news, Palace press officer Claire Castro said.

“The President supports not only the banning of Facebook but all platforms, including gaming apps, that could be considered harmful to our young people and our country,” Castro said in the same article.

Castro added that the government is studying whether platforms should remain in the country if they fail to take accountability or respond adequately to requests to address violence and fake news. She also dismissed criticism that a Facebook ban would violate freedom of speech and expression.(MyTVCebu)