A preliminary investigation has been launched in France following allegations of child trafficking via the secondhand goods marketplace Vinted, the Nantes prosecutor’s office announced.

Authorities were alerted after users of the platform reported seeing listings they considered “suspicious” because they referred to toys or other items of negligible value, yet were being sold for astronomical sums, and whose descriptions mentioned ages and sizes that could correspond to those of young children.

The issue gained traction on social media platforms, particularly on TikTok: “Look, a Harry Potter figurine for 30,000 euros,” said a content creator in a video posted in mid-June. “The price raises a lot of questions,” he added, as do “the details (in the description)—height 1.58, age 13.” He also expressed suspicion that it might be “some kind of code for child trafficking.”

High Commissioner for Children Sarah El-Haïri said on Tuesday that she had reported “the existence of suspicious accounts” on the platform. On Thursday, she described as “chilling,” if true, the content of an article by the outlet 20minutes, which claimed that it had come into contact with a man who was selling a young girl through a seemingly “harmless” classified ad. The article was “corrected” today because the alleged child trafficker was a 17-year-old high school student who posted the ad to trap “pedophiles,” according to his statement.

So far, the prosecutor’s office has not clarified whether any of the suspicions were substantiated. Many of the sellers “exposed” in the videos assured the French Press Agency that they were, in fact, selling toys.

For its part, the Vinted platform stated that it “was made aware of the listings” and, after investigating the matter, found no evidence linking them to criminal activity. The age listed in the listings is the age for which the items are intended, while the high prices are justified either because they are collectibles or because they are part of some kind of “bargaining tactic” with buyers. He also assured that the company does not tolerate “any inappropriate content” and intervenes “every time” a “suspicious” ad appears, while also cooperating with the authorities.

Source: skai.gr