TWO Korean tourists were taken into custody by the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI 7) after being caught red-handed running a pornography livestream that involved a 19-year-old Filipina inside a condominium in Lapu-Lapu City on Sunday night, Nov. 19, 2023.
The arrested were Tae Young Han, 51, and Yunyeong Kim, 28, who arrived in Cebu last Sept. 17. The two are set to face charges for Qualified Trafficking in Persons under Sections 4 and 6 of Republic Act 11862 or the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2022.
In a press conference on Tuesday, Nov. 21, Arnel Pura, agent-in-charge of the NBI Cebu District Office, said they conducted an entrapment operation to apprehend the suspects on Sunday, based on information they received from a reliable source regarding the alleged illegal activity.
The operatives of the NBI caught the two in the act during their live stream or broadcast of the video around 10 p.m. on Sunday. The NBI rescued the 19-year-old Filipina, whom the NBI said was among the victims.
Also recovered during the operation were the computers, smartphones and sex toys allegedly used by the suspects during their live sex shows.
Based on initial reports, Pura said Kim would engage in sexual activities with their Filipina victims while Han would record it for live-streaming on an exclusive Korean application with paid subscriptions called Popkon TV.
The activity took place inside a condominium unit they rented in Barangay Mactan.
Pura said they are still in the process of identifying whether the two arrested Koreans are part of a larger group involved in this illegal business.
He added that the ages of the victims range from legal to minor.
NBI Senior Agent Niño Rodriguez said the teenage victim confessed to accepting the suspects’ offer because she desperately needed money but was unaware that the suspects had recorded it.
The 19-year-old Filipina is currently in the custody of the Department of Social Welfare and Development 7 and is expected to submit a statement about the incident.
Rodriguez said the suspects would give their victims P5,000 after each show, but most were unaware that they were being recorded.
Meanwhile, the suspects declined to be interviewed by the media regarding the allegations.