I reported a dangerous man to crimestoppers...now I'm scared that he'll realise it was me!

[wimsywon]

Has anyone else used crimestoppers website to report a crime? trouble is, this person knows me and I know things that he's told me in private...I'm so scared that he'll realise I spoke up and do some thing nasty. He is a nasty manipulative man who treats women and girls like dirt. A registered sex offender who approached me in a shop 3 years ago and has used mind games and sly cunning to control...I broke when I found out things about him and have contacted crimestoppers to warn of him breaching his register terms and benefit fraud and his stash of weapons! I really am nervous about this but nothing else I could do to protect other females. Can anyone with experience of using anon online reporting to police/dwp, please please assure me,I'm safe from any repercussions from this vile man?

I've done something like this and then panicked about it afterwards. In my case they recorded my name and address along with the report on their database. I was pretty mortified about this and asked to have it taken off but they said they couldn't. What they did say was that if someone accessed the records it would leave a 'trace' on their computer, so if something came out it would be obvious who it was.

They also said that when people report tings they generally record it as "intelligence", but won't act on it until there is a large chunk of it or it reaches a threshold of severity. I think you'll be totally safe. The most that will happen is that it will be stored on a computer somewhere. If there was enough to act on it would have to come from several other places too - so one small report anonymously from you really really isn't anything to worry about.

Thank you so much for explaining Popplecake! I'm so scared of this person. He's cruel and manipulative in a subtle way. I wouldn't be believed if i went into a police station, that's why I've been discrete. Worst of all, he's constantly texting and wants to 'meet up' 'be friends', but all the time, i'm thinking he knows and is plotting to get me back. i feel really depressed and have thought about suicide. I really don't know how to escape this awful man! I cant even prove that he's stalking me because he's so careful to protect himself. i just have this feeling of dread from the moment i wake up (if i'm lucky enough to sleep at night). I'm in paranoid fear of the unknown. He may do me harm before any crime agency catches up with him.

In places you sound like you're in a similar position to me. Sometimes I think there is a generic mould for these jerks somewhere.

Actually, there is something you can do. First, go to a solicitor and ask them to write him a letter telling him to back off communicating with you. Harrassment is -any- form of unwanted communication, even if he was "only" sending you a text saying "how are you?" once a day. If he breaks it, you can get a court order with "powers of arrest" attached.

The other thing the police can do is write a non-legally implicating letter to him politely telling him to desist. Personally I would go for the solicitor because the police letter has little weight and might inflame the situation.

Do speak to your GP if you are experiencing suicidal thoughts - it might be that a short course of something could lessen your anxiety and feelings and make it all easier to cope with.

Thanks. I will go to CAB if things persist and find out if i can get a solicitors letter. I may even speak to my GP about the way i feel just to have it on file if things do escalate. Its very hard to prove or make it clear to people that words and subtle threats can bring you down without any outward obvious signs of menace. I guess a sex offender who evaded a long sentence and knows the law, is really quite shrewd and thinks ahead. I should take steps to protect myself from any backlash.