‘Lt Colonel started surfing child porn during Assam stint’

‘BOREDOM’ DROVE HIM TO CRIME

Mateen Hafeez | TNN

Mumbai: The 42-year-old Lieutenant Colonel of the Indian Army, Jagmohan Balbir Singh, arrested by the cyber crime investigation cell (CCIC) of the Mumbai Police on Thursday for allegedly uploading obscene pictures of children on the internet, told police that he started surfing child pornography and video clippings during his posting in Assam in 2007.

“I was frustrated and started collecting CDs of child porn movies,’’ Singh is learnt to have told the police.

“Several of my friends and I would watch porn movies during our posting in Assam; this fired my curiosity about child porn and I started downloading the same. I had no intention to harm anyone,’’ Singh told the police. Investigators have so far found around 250 such clippings on Singh’s hard disks. They are taking the help of computer experts and hackers to get the details of Singh’s computers. The children in the clippings—as tagged in the titles—fall in the age group of three to 15 years.

Singh, who worked in the supply and transport wing of the army, was questioned for hours on Saturday. He will remain in police custody till May 12.

A commerce graduate, Singh joined the Indian Military Academy in 1989, and was awarded the nine-year service medal in 1998. Singh was just a few months from receiving the 21-year service medal.

After joining the military, Singh was posted in Agra as Second Lieutenant in 1990. Later he worked in Bangalore, militancy affected areas in Jammu and Kashmir, Dhara in Madhya Pradesh, Gwalior, Bangalore military training centre, Arunachal Pradesh, Jalandhar in Punjab and various Ultra-affected divisions in Assam. He was posted as a Lieutenant Colonel in western command head quarters in Mumbai before he was arrested.

If convicted, Singh faces up to seven years in jail and a fine of Rs 10 lakh.

Cops probe if Lt Col posted porn for cash
Mumbai: Cyber crime investigation cell (CCIC) officials are now exploring if Lieutenant Colonel Jagamohan Singh published and transmitted child pornography on a German website for monetary gain.

Singh, attached to the Western command of the Indian Army, was arrested on Thursday.
Police officials have also taken Singh’s account number and will soon check his financial transactions. “We will be going through his bank records and monetary transactions soon,’’ said an official. “In some cases, money is paid by some websites for uploading such obscene images. We just want to find out if Singh was doing it for money or for pleasure,’’ an officer said.

Though Singh has admitted to his crime, the police are not taking any chances. “We are collecting the evidence to produce in court,’’ an official said, adding that Singh, who was not very tech-savvy, would commit the crime from his residence.

The Times of India, May 9, 2010