KOCHI: A YouTuber was arrested in Kochi on Friday for allegedly sexually harassing a 16-year-old girl. Govind Vijay, known for his YouTube channel VJ Machan, was taken into custody from an apartment in Kochi following a complaint by the victim. The channel boasts over 250,000 followers on YouTube and Instagram.
According to police, the victim had been following Govind for several months and befriended him through a social media platform. In May of this year, Govind met the victim at a mall in Kochi and later took her to a nearby location where the alleged harassment occurred.
The Kalamassery police have registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. They have seized Govind's mobile phones and laptops for forensic examination and are also scrutinizing his social media accounts as part of the investigation.
Govind was produced before a magistrate court and has been remanded to judicial custody. This incident follows a similar case last year involving another YouTuber, Mallu Traveller, who faced an investigation after a foreign victim alleged sexual advances at a hotel in Kochi.