Child pornography mushrooms in Panama

 CHILD  PORNOGRAPHY in Panama has mushroomed  from 26 in 2014 to  958 so far this year according to reports from the The First, Sixth, Twelfth and Sixteenth Circuit prosecutors.

Of the total cases reported this year, 80% were alerted by Interpol.

First circuit, prosecutor  Katya Melendez, told La Prensa that investigations in these cases were largely initiated by alerts from the Interpol (Interpol), which through cyber patrols detect accounts  of people who engage in the,practice who are then tracked through their conputer IP.

Prosecutors also investigate when they detect through social networks minors distributing pictures of themselves naked or in sexual activities which  “is considered child pornography,”reports La Prensa.

In the latter scenario, Melendez said that the crime is not only when the pornographic material is produced, but when it is published, disseminated or sold. “So the fact of sending and receiving this material also commits the offense of pornography,” she said.

According to the prosecution, Panama also practices what is called morphing, modality that occurs when pictures and videos are manipulated to link children and adults in sexual activities.

Melendez said that although this method is new in Panama, it  fit within the provisions of the Penal Code. “It is child pornography, with either real or simulated images,” she said.

There is a chance that some of these people can be connected in chat rooms of child pornography through the Internet.

The Criminal Code provides for sentences of between 5 and 10 years for those who commit the crime of child pornography. Sanctions may increase according to the characteristics of each case.