Senegalese authorities have arrested 14 individuals linked to a paedophile ring operating between Senegal and France, police confirmed on Sunday.
According to a statement from the Senegalese Criminal Investigations Division (DIC), the gang had been active since 2017 and engaged in crimes including organised paedophilia, pimping, rape of minors under 15, sodomy, and deliberate transmission of HIV/AIDS. Victims were reportedly forced to have repeated unprotected sexual encounters with men, many of whom were HIV-positive, while being filmed.
Four of the suspects allegedly acted under the direction of a French national, arrested in France in April 2025, in exchange for monetary transfers.
The 14 suspects were presented before a judge on Friday following coordinated searches in multiple districts of Dakar and Kaolack, about 200 km (124 miles) south-east of the capital. Authorities seized items believed to be connected to the crimes during the raids.
“The DIC carried out a major operation, dismantling a transnational organised criminal group whose members are primarily based between France and Senegal,” the statement read.
The operation was conducted in close collaboration with French authorities, including the participation of a French delegation. Senegalese police have vowed to continue dismantling such networks and have provided a toll-free number for the public to report relevant information.
