Online sex racket busted; 13 held

Seven girls, who had been trapped and forced into prostitution by the accused, were rescued by the cyber crime police personnel during the raid last night, police said.

The raid was carried out as part of 'Operation Big Daddy', an ambitious drive by the state police to check the abuse of children using online platforms.

Acting on a tip-off, members of cyber crime police approached the racket agents as prospective 'customers' and trapped them, police said.

They also said the accused had run the racket using online platforms including social media and websites. The victims were lured into the gang giving them false promises including offers in movies and television soaps, they said.

Five cars and mobile handsets were also seized from the arrested members.