PROBE

8chan Under Investigation by Police in Philippines

The founder and current owner of the online message board both reside in the Philippines.

Police in the Philippines have opened an investigation into the anonymous message board 8chan, which has recently come under fire for its links to three mass shootings in the past six months. Jim Watkins, 8chan’s American owner who lives in the Philippines, is being scrutinized to determine whether he and the site were negligent in their moderation of the web forum, which was allegedly used by the accused gunman in the mass shooting in El Paso that left 22 people dead. The site, which has attracted white supremacists, was also allegedly used in the New Zealand mosque shooting and the Poway synagogue shooting. “The first thing we want to know is the influence of 8chan in the Philippines,” said Lt. Col. Elpidio Ramirez, who is investigating the case. Ramirez is seeking cooperation from Watkins and 8chan’s original founder, Fredrick Brennan. On Wednesday, Philippine officials said Watkins appeared to have left the country. Web-services provider Cloudflare on Sunday ended its relationship with 8chan, and the site went dark.