Vijayan had noticed that his 15-year-old daughter Ahaana had been acting more secretive and sneaky lately, but every time he checked her iPad or computer he didn't find anything of concern. One night, like any teenager's parent, he got a strange feeling and knew something was up. He quickly grabbed her iPad and began to search, and what he found left him sick...😮😮
There, in a message to a group of online "friends," was a provocative picture of his daughter. Vijayan knew something wasn't right.
Vijayan knew Ahaana had been talking to a 17-year-old boy named Bruce who had introduced a number of other "friends" into the social media circle. Bruce was actually an innocent young boy just having fun meeting people online – he had no idea he was actually part of something much more sinister.
In his digging, Vijayan discovered that four of the "friends" in the online group were actually adult men. Enraged, he turned over what he knew – as well as access to all of their technology – to the Cyber Task Force of Portage Police Department.
Seven months later, he got a call that left him cold:"Mr. and Mrs. Nair, can you and your family please come to the police station as soon as possible?"
When they arrived, a detective explained that Bruce had been unknowingly set up as a scout to lure young girls into his circle as prey for the men to choose from. Bruce had over 2,000 young followers from all over the globe, and none of them were aware they were being set up as possible human trafficking victims.
"My beautiful girl was prey for these monsters," Vijayan said, "she was quickly approaching a meetup (in her words), and I fear that I may have never seen my daughter again."
Vijayan said he is sharing his family's story in the hopes that it will scare other parents and convince them to be more vigilant when it comes to their children's' online presence.
"I hope this triggers fear in the hearts of every one of you," he wrote. "Dig into your children's accounts, ask them questions, and tell them not to have 'friends' they don't actually know.
Most kids and teens are innocent – they would never imagine that someone they were talking to online wasn't actually the person they thought they were. They need their parents watching over them, protecting them from the unknown dangers that lie on the other side of their screen.
"It's worth the upset it may cause your child to keep them safe," Vijayan said. "If you do not know or understand what to look for or how to monitor your child's social media use, then ask someone who does, someone you feel you can trust with the life of your child."
"This is not someone else's problem," he added, "this is, right here, right now, and real as the tears I shed for the innocence that was stolen from my daughter."
If you would like more information on human trafficking or how to keep your family safe, you can contact the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 1 (888) 373-7888.
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Courtesy :P Ramanthan
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