Police shut down trio of obscene livestreaming apps
By Yang Zekun | China Daily | Updated: 2024-01-15 09:12
Police in Tongliao, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, recently solved an obscenity case involving three mobile apps with over 100,000 registered users and around 4,000 female livestream hosts, according to an official statement from the Tongliao Public Security Bureau.
The authorities shut down three apps accused of airing live obscene performances and arrested 13 suspects, the statement said. Financial transactions related to the case amount to nearly 100 million yuan ($14 million).
Police in the Horqin district subbureau of the Tongliao Public Security Bureau discovered a mobile app that was believed to be broadcasting obscene content on a livestreaming platform and began investigating.
They found that female hosts were providing users with one-on-one sexually explicit performances on the apps, which cost the user between 6 yuan to 16 yuan per minute. The hosts were spread across Inner Mongolia and other regions including the provinces of Liaoning, Hunan, Zhejiang and Sichuan.
Registered members were able to add money to their accounts and pay the hosts with virtual coins. Various virtual coin rewards and gifts allowed users to access various levels of explicit performances by the hosts.
Police found that three individuals from Hunan and Hubei provinces were suspected of organizing and establishing the app that was investigated. They were also accused of organizing and operating two other similar apps.
On Jan 6, police in different cities simultaneously launched a crackdown, leading to the shutdown of the three apps and the apprehension of 13 suspects, including 11 who were allegedly responsible for operating, managing and maintaining the apps.
After interrogation, police found that the suspects faced financial difficulties in the early stages of their business after establishing a chat app. To earn more money, they engaged in risky behavior by using the app as a conduit to attract users to pay for obscene performances, the statement said.
With a commission as high as 40 percent, the apps quickly gathered a large number of female livestream hosts and app users, generating substantial profits in a short period of time.
Seven of the core suspects have been detained by police in Horqin, while four are on bail pending trial. The investigation is ongoing.
