Influencer, associate arrested over selling adult content

Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s (DMP) Detective Branch (DB) has arrested an Instagram influencer and her alleged associate for reportedly producing, promoting, and selling pornographic content.

DB arrested influencer Sumaiya Sayeed, 25, from a flat in the capital’s Vatara area and, based on information obtained from her, arrested her alleged associate and boyfriend, Khaja Saklain Faruk, from the Badda’s Dhaka Popular Travels office on 11 August.

A case was filed with Ramna Model police station under the Pornography Control Act 2012, where Sumaiya’s father, Md Abu Sayeed, was also named as an accused for allegedly knowing about her activities and receiving money from them, Tarikul said.

According to DB, its cyber monitoring team on 10 August found advertisements for selling adult content on Sumaiya’s Instagram and Telegram accounts, with payments accepted through bKash and Nagad, including a “lifetime package” for Tk3,500.

Tarikul said police produced the arrestees before a court and sought a three-day remand, as investigators suspect Sumaiya has several associates, who need to be identified and arrested.

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