A recent case of pornographic videos involving three boys may have uncovered an international pedophile ring that has set its sights on Indonesia.

West Java Police found that the two videos, which depicted a woman engaging in sexual acts with two boys and another woman with one boy, were made based on an order from abroad.

Police acted swiftly after the videos were widely circulated on social media last week and arrested six suspects on Monday for allegedly being involved in producing the pornographic films.

One of the suspects, Muhammad Faisal Akbar, 30, told police that he had allegedly received requests from a Russian and a Canadian.

“Faisal said the films were ordered by the two foreigners, both of whom he knew from Facebook,” West Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Agung Maryoto said in Bandung, West Java, on Monday.

Faisal, who is accused of planning, directing and recording the videos, first uploaded a pornographic picture of a woman and a boy to a closed group of alleged pedophiles on Facebook.

The photo received positive feedback and he was then told that he would be paid to make the videos.

The West Java Police are extending their investigation and trying to unmask the international syndicate in cooperation with the National Police in Jakarta.

“We are investigating these two foreigners,” Agung said.

The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) concurred with police allegations that Indonesia had been targeted by an international pedophile ring, commissioner Retno Listyarti said.

The government agency’s own investigation showed that the videos were part of a collection made at the behest of the global ring, she added.

End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (ECPAT) Indonesia program manager Andy Ardian said the viral videos could be just the tip of the iceberg.

“The videos were made professionally. This shows that they were made for commercial use,” Andy said. “This is surely an attack on our children.”

Police revealed that after the videos were made, Faisal allegedly sent them through messaging application Telegram, the browser version of which was blocked last year by the government over concerns that it had been used by local terrorists.

Faisal allegedly received Rp 31 million (US$2,300) from the two foreigners.

He allegedly spent Rp 10 million to finance the film, including paying the people involved, including the three children.

“Their motive was money,” Agung said.

Police also arrested five women, two of whom — identified as A and IM — allegedly starred in the films. They are also accused of recruiting the minors.

The other three women included recruiter C and S and H whose children reportedly appeared in the videos.

The films were shot between April and August last year in two hotel rooms in Bandung, West Java.

Police revealed that one of the children, aged 9 or 11, cried and refused to be involved but Faisal and the boy’s mother, S, allegedly forced him to do it.

“The suspects abused and exploited the children by making pornographic films and then spreading it widely,” Agung said adding that they face multiple charges for alleged child exploitation, pornography and circulating porn videos online, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 to 20 years behind bars.

The police have collaborated with the Integrated Service Center of the Child and Women Empowerment to provide counseling for the three children.

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