Hunt for 'ogres' in Sicily, four reported and one arrested: 'games' discovered for virtual abuse of minors

An articulated and delicate investigation to protect minors, coordinated by the District Attorney's Office of Catania and conducted by the State Police, has revealed a dark network dedicated to the possession and sharing of child pornography. The operation concluded with the registration of four individuals in the list of suspects and an arrest in the act, highlighting particularly disturbing aspects related to the distorted use of digital technologies.

The four men targeted by investigators are aged between 50 and 70 years and come from different social backgrounds, including employees and retirees. One of them was arrested in the act following the discovery of a large quantity of illegal content.

The investigation began with the National Center for the Contrast of Online Child Pornography (CNCPO) of the Postal Police Service. The collaboration with the non-profit Child Rescue Coalition was crucial: through advanced investigative tools, it was possible to geolocate with precision, in Sicilian territory, the users of various online accounts used to share and download images and videos of child pornography.

Based on these findings, the Operational Center for Cybersecurity of the Postal Police of Catania conducted the necessary investigations, allowing the Public Prosecutor's Office to issue targeted personal and computer search warrants against the suspects.

The operations confirmed the suspicions: numerous devices were seized containing tens of thousands of illegal files.

The most alarming aspect concerns the man who was arrested, a measure later validated by the Preliminary Investigating Judge.

Investigators found that the suspect did not limit himself to archiving traditional content: for the first time in the Catania district, the availability of various computer tools and "games" specifically programmed to carry out real "virtual sexual abuses" against minors emerged.