Belgrade Man, 24, Arrested for Blackmailing Children Online
Interior Ministry: the suspect contacted children through fake social media profiles. Ten children aged 11 to 15 have been identified, and the investigation is widening.
Officers of the Department for the Fight Against High-Tech Crime of the Interior Ministry (MUP) have arrested D. P. (24) of Belgrade, who is suspected of using fake social media profiles to contact children and blackmail them into sending sexually explicit photos and videos. The arrest was ordered by the Special Department for the Fight Against High-Tech Crime of the Belgrade Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office, and the ministry made the case public on November 3, 2026.
The suspect faces charges of displaying, obtaining and possessing pornographic material and of exploiting a minor for pornography. The ministry’s statement gives neither the exact day of the arrest nor the names of the social networks where the accounts were opened.
What does the Interior Ministry say about how he operated?
According to the statement, D. P. created fake accounts and posed as a boy or a girl, which let him communicate directly with children. Through various “challenges,” he got them to make and send sexually explicit photos and videos.
When children tried to break off contact, the suspect allegedly threatened and blackmailed them into continuing to send such material.
Investigative work and forensic examination of seized mobile phones have so far identified ten children aged 11 to 15 who are suspected of having been subjected to this treatment. Interviews have been held with the identified children.
The ministry ranks the case among the most serious of its kind. The statement says that, given the method and the intensity of the threats and blackmail aimed at children, the case stands out “as one of the most serious cases of predatory behavior on the internet uncovered in Serbia in the past several years.”
Are there more victims?
That is what is being checked now. Police and prosecutors, the statement says, are continuing to establish all the circumstances of the case and to verify whether other children were subjected to the same conduct. Until a final verdict, D. P. remains a suspect.
An appeal to parents and citizens
Along with news of the arrest, the ministry published a series of tips. One is a warning that a person who presents himself online as a peer may not be a child at all. Children should be told that in situations of pressure, threats or blackmail they can turn to their parents, guardians or another adult they trust, and that this holds even if they have already sent a photo or video. If a child receives such messages, the correspondence and the account details should be saved. Material showing the sexual exploitation of children should not be downloaded, copied or forwarded, and the case should be reported to the police immediately.
The Interior Ministry said in its statement:
“Understanding, support and a timely reaction by adults are of particular importance for protecting a child and preventing further abuse.”
The ministry also addressed parents and guardians directly: “The Interior Ministry appeals to parents and guardians to talk with children about internet safety, especially about contacts with unknown persons, requests to send intimate photos and videos, and the threats and blackmail that may follow.”
The call extends to all other citizens. The ministry stated: “We call on parents, guardians and all citizens who have knowledge of such contacts or abuses to report them to the police, even when they are not sure whether a criminal offense is involved.”
