MANILA, July 6 — A South Korean man in his 50s has been arrested in the Philippines on charges of child abuse, human trafficking and sexual exploitation, following allegations that he fathered a child with a 14-year-old Filipino girl he had been living with.
According to Hankook Ilbo, Philippine authorities said the suspect, identified only as “A”, was detained on June 11 in Cagayan de Oro City.
The arrest followed a tip-off from the country’s cybercrime investigators, who flagged a YouTube video that raised suspicions of child exploitation.
Police rescued the teenage girl, referred to as “B”, along with her two-month-old baby, believed to have been fathered by the suspect.
The case is being pursued under multiple Philippine laws, including the Anti-Rape Law and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act.
Investigators say the man had used a YouTube channel purportedly created to help underprivileged Filipino children, soliciting donations from South Korean viewers under the guise of charity work.
However, authorities believe the channel masked exploitative behaviour.
Online crime-monitoring group Crime Net has claimed that the man is behind a YouTube account that regularly posted videos of children in poor communities, a practice critics have labelled “poverty porn”.
The suspect’s final video, uploaded on the day of his arrest, reportedly included a reference to the underage girl’s baby: “Born on April 24. My first baby.”
Crime Net also pointed out that some of the videos had depicted the girl’s pregnancy, with commenters now questioning whether the suspect was documenting his own crimes.
“This is horrifying,” wrote one viewer. Others posted comments such as “Do not donate” and “I saw the devil,” reflecting the widespread outrage online.
The Korean Embassy in the Philippines has not issued a statement, but the case has sparked strong reactions in both countries, with calls for tighter oversight of overseas-based online content creators.
Philippine police arrest South Korean YouTuber accused of fathering child with 14-year-old girl
