NY: A boy has been arrested after he and a 14-year-old girl appeared in a pornographic video, which was then posted on Facebook and is believed to have been seen by thousands of their fellow schoolchildren. The 14-year-old boy, from Cheltenham, appeared in the video alongside the girl, who is from the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire.
Police say the video, which they describe as pornographic, may have been seen by thousands of children across the county.
According to the Daily Mail report, the film has now been removed from Facebook - but police warn it could have been distributed more widely on the internet.
The boy was arrested for making and distributing an indecent image and has been given a final warning by police, meaning the incident will remain on his record for the next six years.
A headteacher at a nearby school, whose pupils were not involved in the incident, but some of whom have seen the tape, warned parents to be vigilant.
Lawrence Montagu, headteacher at St Peter’s High School, in Gloucester, said: 'I am led to believe that this video involves young people from schools in Gloucestershire but not, I emphasise, St Peter’s.
'However, I know that the video has been viewed by students in St Peter’s and I have spoken to the school about the lack of dignity and self-respect people have who allow themselves to be portrayed in such a way.
'It is very sad that our young people are exposed to such pornography, but it is one of the evils of modern technology.'
He added: 'We simply have to continue educating the young to reap the benefits that modern technology offers but not to fall into the trap of misusing it.
'We must try to persuade them that we should not want to be involved in listening to or looking at anything that portrays a lack of dignity and respect for other people.
'I know that in St Peter’s there are many young men and women who do not want to see such behaviour and I applaud them for maintaining their self-respect.'
A spokesman for Gloucestershire Constabulary said: 'We are aware that other children have seen the footage.
'Officers have spoken to the girl involved and her parents.
'We know parents may be concerned by this incident and would obviously advise people not to upload any material of this nature to social media websites.'
Inspector Andy Matheson, from the force’s schools unit, said: 'The practice of posting compromising or even pornographic pictures on the internet is something that is happening with increasing frequency nationally. The current proliferation of smart phones enables images to be taken and shared with ease.
'What a lot of people don’t realise is that as soon as they share a photograph with someone else, whether by MMS or by posting it on a social networking site, they lose control of that image, and while the image can be deleted, it could easily have been copied by any number of people in the meantime.
'A very common practice among young people at the moment is "sexting" - the act of sending sexually explicit photographs, primarily between mobile phones. If the subject of the image is under 18 then anyone who makes, possesses or shares the image commits a criminal offence.
'The consequences can be quite devastating for the person concerned. If anybody finds themselves in this situation I would strongly urge them to contact the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, who can offer valuable help and advice.'
