to think the people 'trapping' the paedophiles aren't doing anything wrong

[LaurieFairyCake]

I realise the police are taking a dim view of this but honestly they admit they don't have enough resources to catch many of them.

'Vigilantes' are talking to them online, arranging to meet - and then calling the police when they turn up (and presenting them with the evidence)

Have you seen the Nazi vigilantes that are on the march in Germany? In my opinion condoning any kind of vigilantism is a dark road to go down.

Well they're violent, crazy thugs

The trappers are just talking to them online, getting them to incriminate themselves and then turning up with the police

I struggle to have a problem with a group who are taking sex offenders / off the streets although see it could be a slippery slope

What's the confused face for?

They starts out as mere 'trappers' but they're making their own rules, what's to stop them escalating things? Or what if some nutjobs think 'gee this looks like fun I think I'll join in'.

Madness.

Mmmmmmmmm!

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/oct/25/vigilante-paedophile-hunters-online-police

I'm really not sure you could be happy that a self selected group of men are choosing to take the law into their own hands. I mean, they aren't exactly functioning normally either, are they? They are not regular members of society, they are exactly as they advertise themselves, vigilantes , and consider themselves to be outside the law!

I can't see why they can't let trainee police officers trap them though, if it's that simple?
I don't really like the idea of vigilantes at all.

Surely vigilantes are only those who are violent/abusive and/or break the law and/or encourage others to do so? These people are just lying about their age/circa online which is perfectly legal in this context then passing info about potential crime to the police, good for them. Can see why the police may not want to openly encourage them but they should quietly take the info and act on it.

The confused face is because I don't think violent, crazy Nazis are similar to people who trap people on the Internet.

They seem quite different types of vigilantes to me, interesting you don't agree.

Interesting you have nothing to say about nutjobs joining their ranks.

We have a proper justice system for a reason.

It's one thing to call the police if your thirteen year old has been being groomed online. Quite another to deliberately entrap paedophiles in order to hope that justice will be done. And what if it isn't? And what checks are in place to ensure that none of these men take the law into their own hands and start handing out a bit of justice on the side?

Condoning vigilante justice is a slippery slope.

I'd kind of worry about the sort of people who would set themselves up hunting those sort of people. I mean I find the whole subject horrific and would never 'enter that world' even for good purposes iyswim. I just find it utterly wierd and can't get my head around it. Maybe CEOP could set up a sort of online version of the Special Police and then it could all be monitored and stuff. But overall I just can't compute the whole subject. I watched the BBC programme last night, just totally awful, poor poor Breck.

What do you mean Mitzy - what nutjobs?

Different types of people who decide that the laws of a country are not good enough and so choose to do something the police cannot in order to punish someone they have decided is guilty?

OK. So what would you say when one of their targets has to be freed because something they did made it impossible to take them to trial? That will happen, may already have happened, we wouldn't necessarily be able to be told.

If you want to change a law you don't go outside it and ask for a bloody medal. You lobby for it.

The nutjobs who will read about this and think it looks like good sport.

Oh I've just re read your post Mitzy - you said YOU think nut jobs will join in.

I have no idea if they would or not.

Worth thinking about I'd have thought.

The buttons will think, hey I know someone called Peter from Staffordshire and he's a bit odd. I bet it's him

I agree TooMuchOfEverything I find it a bit disturbing that someone would deliberately want to pose as an under age girl in order to lure paedophiles to them. Esp given they have no training or expertise. How do we know this isn't fulfilling some kind of fantasy for them as well....

I wonder if the vigilantes are actually doing anything illegal.

Buttons = nutjobs

Of course nutjobs will join in. Remember the NOTW name a paedo campaign? .

I've read some of the transcripts wannabe and they're really careful to post nothing provocative or sexual, all the dodgy lines come from the perpetrator - it's so it stands up in court

I remember being really surprised they got away with that, the news of the world

But how do you know that all the transcripts are given to the police? They write this stuff on their computers, print of that which is of use to the CPS? It's a good way to ensure the police don't come snooping round your computer isn't it?

If we as a society thought it important enough we would make the funds available to the police who could then tackle the problem.

These people think it's important, and are doing something about it.

I have a friend who was abused as a child, grew up joined the police because he wants to make a difference , he has worked tirelessly on exactly this, and constantly is traumatised by not being able to do the job properly because there are no funds, it's just not a priority for society .

I despise people who occupy the police with unnecessary crap like parking on double yellows on the school run, speeding, drunk nonsense all the selfish shit, if everyone made an effort not to create pointless acts the police then have to deal with, they would have the time and money to go after the predators.