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PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. (AP) — Police are asking parents in South Florida to check the online accounts of their children after three teens were accused of creating an Instagram account to solicit and post explicit photos of other minors.
Pembroke Pines police arrested two boys, ages 12 and 13, and a girl, 13, on Thursday, following a 10-week investigation. They face charges of electronic transmission of child pornography.
"The Pembroke Pines Police Department urges the community to pay close attention to their children's online activity," Sgt. Angela Goodwin said in a news release Thursday. Parents who think their children may have been exploited can contact Pembroke Pines police or any other law enforcement agency.
Police say the social media account encouraged its 500 followers to post nude and sexually explicit photos of minors to "expose" them. The posts included their names and personal information. Many followers posted cruel comments in response to the images.
Sgt. Drew Jacobs told the South Florida Sun Sentinel (http://bit.ly/1vq0FrT ) he didn't know what prompted the investigation, how long the account had been active, or how many young people were exploited.
"All I know is it's multiple," he said.
Another spokesman, Sgt. Carlos Corretjer, said Friday the investigation is ongoing but no other arrests were imminent. He declined to discuss further details of the case.
Pembroke Pines is a suburb of Fort Lauderdale.
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Information from: Sun Sentinel , http://www.sun-sentinel.com/
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