UP engineer who sexually exploited over 50 children arrested

The accused allegedly gave expensive gifts to his victims to 'buy' their silence

An Uttar Pradesh engineer, who had allegedly sexually exploited over 50 children, was arrested from state's Banda district, about 170 kilometres from here, by the CBI.

The culprit, identified as Ram Bhawan, who worked as a junior engineer in the irrigation department, had allegedly been sexually exploiting minor children (between five and 15 years of age) for the past around ten years.

According to the police sources here, Ram Bhawan, who was a resident of state's Chitrakoot district, about 250 kilometres from here, gave costly gifts, including mobile phones, to his victims to 'buy' their silence.

The CBI sleuths recovered huge amount of cash, a dozen cell phones, webcams and other electronic devices from the residence of the accused. Sex toys were also recovered from there, sources said.

Police sources said that Ram Bhawan's victims hailed from Banda, Chitrakoot and some other neighbouring districts.

Sources said that the accused was also involved in producing child porn, and he might also have sold the same to people in the country as well as abroad.

The central investigating agency was probing if Ram Bhawan had accomplices. The possibility of the involvement of some other people could not be ruled out, police sources said.

According to the sources, the accused would be produced before the district court in Banda by the CBI for obtaining his transit remand.