By Admin. Updated 3:32 p.m., Sunday, January 11, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).
The circulation of explicit images of minors and young people on anonymous Instagram pages in St. Vincent and the Grenadines represents a grave criminal matter, not online entertainment.
As a credible news outlet, One News SVG, has already publicly urged citizens to report these pages and any harmful content to the relevant authorities. This follows growing concern that young people affected by these posts are experiencing severe emotional distress, with reports circulating of some contemplating suicide.
This alone elevates the matter to a national emergency.
One of the key pages involved refers to the youths as “Old Balls” and plays the lyrics of a popular song in their posts.
What the Law Clearly Says
Under SVG’s Cybercrime Act, 2016: Section 14 criminalises the creation, possession, distribution, or publication of child pornography through any computer system, including social media. Penalty: Up to 20 years’ imprisonment and/or heavy fines.
Section 15 makes it an offence to publish or share intimate images without consent, even where the victim is not a minor. Penalty: Up to 5 years’ imprisonment.
Under the Criminal Code of St. Vincent and the Grenadines: Section 124: Having sexual intercourse with a child under 13 years is punishable by life imprisonment. Section 125: Having sexual intercourse with a female aged 13 or 14 carries a penalty of up to 15 years’ imprisonment.
These laws are relevant because sharing sexual images of minors online constitutes sexual exploitation, regardless of whether the perpetrator had physical contact with the child.
Even if material is shared of persons who are not minors, they still can get heavy fines and jail time, had there are cases to back this up.
In January 2024, a man in St. Vincent was fined for his unauthorized access to a woman’s phone, tampering with her social media accounts, and obtaining explicit photos from the same device without authorization from the woman. The lawyer who won the case was Adrian Odle.
Young people can also be held criminally responsible once they are eight years old and older.
Anonymity Is a Myth
Those operating these pages should understand this clearly: the police can identify you. Law enforcement can obtain IP addresses, account data, device information, and cooperation from social media companies. Anonymous usernames do not shield offenders from arrest, charges, or prison sentences.
Sharing, reposting, storing, or encouraging the circulation of nude or sexual images of minors is a serious criminal offence in SVG. It destroys lives, causes lasting psychological harm, and carries long prison terms.
To the perpetrators: stop now.
To the public: report the pages, report the content, and protect the victims.
This is not gossip. This is crime; and the law will respond accordingly.
END
One News SVG 