MANILA-A one year-old child who was put on a leash, treated like a dog by his own mother, and whose photo was posted on social media site was rescued for custody by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
NBI official said the penalty for crimes committed through the use of internet is one degree higher under the anti-cybercrime law.
Marilyn Tigas, chief of the DSWD office in Bataan, said the social workers took the child from Orani, Bataan and brought the boy to a residential center for children.
Tigas said DSWD region 3 will take charge on how long it will keep the child.
“Ayaw ibigay ng magulang pero hindi pwede. Yun po ang nakita naming magandang kailangan pong gawin, alisin po muna ang bata sa magulang,” she told radio DZMM.
When asked about why the mother posted the photos, the official said the child’s mother did not know that the photos of the child would go viral.
According to her, the mother personally surrendered to the DSWD office in Orani after receiving negative comments in her Facebook account.
Tigas added that the child’s father is a government employee while the grandmother is a high school principal.
Justice Seretary Leila De Lima said “if proven authentic, then we are looking at a case of gross child abuse which is punishable under RA 7610 (Anti-Child Abuse Law)” referring to the photos posted by the mother.
While, NBI Director Virgilio Mendez confirmed that the case in now into the hand of the bureau’s Cybercrime Division.
H/T: ABS-CBN News, and YouTube video.