To be shocked that registered sex offenders can change their name so easily?

[Clymene]

There is already a thread in FWR about this but there's a new article published today in the Times.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/bac57036-ebc3-11eb-984b-57a44d13e8d6?shareToken=3c8c416d153646bc7bccb84c68fba2faa_

Hopefully that link works.

A day after his sentence for making images of little girls, teacher Ben Lewis changed his name to Ben David, got a new passport and DBS check in his new name and went on to offend in a school in Spain.

Of course bloody sex offenders are going to do this!

Other thread: Sex offenders free to abuse children after changing ID www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/4303105-Sex-offenders-free-to-abuse-children-after-changing-ID

I expect a lot of hand-wringing will be done and vows of “lessons must be learned” will be claimed but absolutely nothing in regards to actually changing laws that allows sex offenders to change their name.

It’s baffles me how often people who draft laws don’t spot massive loopholes like this!

You already posted this exact thread earlier.

@Lockheart

You already posted this exact thread earlier.

Sorry, I'm on the wrong thread! My mistake.

I am confused about how just changing name gives you clear dbs😱 How is there a note somewhere in the databes about name change

Anybody can change name. The name change though wouldn't impact dbs which should be being completed. If I changed my name then my health care records, did, professional registration (including any previous strikes), police records, probation requirements would still be linked to me.

Its Unfortunate in this case but presumably they didn't check his police record at all, so him changing name has little to do with it unless they were only using Google to screen people.

Unfortunately its common amongst sex offenders because Internet sleuths will push people to make death threats, turn up at houses, abuse their family members including turning up at their kids school. In doing that they push people further underground and put more people at risk

I've certainly dbs'd people who have come back with histories under another name.
In one incidence they couldn't disclose the previous name for various protection reasons but I did get a call explaining their prevention order requirements (which fit with the role)

It is a legal loophole which should be closed. Indeed not being able to change your name should be part of your sentence in a way and of any release from prison.

The problem is that it's up to the name-changer to tell DBS that they have changed their name. So yeah, that's totally fool proof. See also how easy it is to get your name removed from the sex offenders register.

@Throwthecam

Anybody can change name. The name change though wouldn't impact dbs which should be being completed. If I changed my name then my health care records, did, professional registration (including any previous strikes), police records, probation requirements would still be linked to me.

Its Unfortunate in this case but presumably they didn't check his police record at all, so him changing name has little to do with it unless they were only using Google to screen people.

Unfortunately its common amongst sex offenders because Internet sleuths will push people to make death threats, turn up at houses, abuse their family members including turning up at their kids school. In doing that they push people further underground and put more people at risk

But he's not the only one. There's at least one other who has been caught doing exactly the same thing. Who knows how many more they are?

And did you really just blame people hunting paedophiles as the reason for them name changing?

Really?

Do they get new nin??? How can this not be caught during the process?

The problem is not the name change, it's failures in the DBS system that mean no one picked up the applicant's complete lack of history.

Paedophile hunters don't help anyone. They do it for kicks, not to protect children.

I used to work with one of those found guilty in this case:

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/apr/22/child-sex-paedophile-abuse-gang-revealed-trial-two-convictions

I’m horrified that he changed his name when he was on trial, especially as he had previously worked with young people. I’d like to think it was in some way to protect his own children and family, but who knows?

In Ireland you can change your name and also self identify as a women without any challenges or state scrutiny, after being convicted of a sex offence.
Don't you dare challenge this as you are labelled all sorts of things. The only thing that won't be challenged is the right of a convicted sex offender to do it. If there is no self disclosure it is hard to get full checks. You try pushing for self identifying women to reveal history before the self identification if they don't want to and see what happens.

@Clymene
Yes to a certain extent. They endanger prosecutions in order to look big on Facebook and prove a point. They directly increase risk to children in my experience

Statistically we know that people are much less likely to re offend if they are able to keep social links and engage properly with offender programmes and probation.

Ultimately things like turning up at kids schools, spreading new identities on Facebook etc cause people to drop out of the programmes that work and conceal identities. Id much rather know that there is a sex offender engaged in a programme living in a community that is vaguely aware of their presence, rather than them completely drop off the radar to new communities and stop engaging

Its a subject of interest to me as I used to work in a programme that managed sex offenders.There was a programme that had very impressive outcomes but caused social media outcry thus was closed because people are so focused on their own anger and vengeance that they'd rather more children be at risk

The DBS check relies on the sex offender being honest and disclosing their name change.

So sex offenders aren't honest and don't disclose their name change.

Who could ever possibly have foreseen this might happen?

Tbh I’m not sure what to suggest

I changed my name by deed poll at 19. I had no criminal record, just hated my name and wanted to break free from an abusive family. By making it harder for the few complete scum like this man to change to their names, it fucks over the majority of normal people that change their name for innocent reasons

I wouldn’t say it’s a loophole. I would say the authorities in question need to do their due diligence

@SchrodingersImmigrant

Do they get new nin??? How can this not be caught during the process?

No your NI stays the same

@Igloo71

I used to work with one of those found guilty in this case:

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/apr/22/child-sex-paedophile-abuse-gang-revealed-trial-two-convictions

I’m horrified that he changed his name when he was on trial, especially as he had previously worked with young people. I’d like to think it was in some way to protect his own children and family, but who knows?

Well reading that link makes you ashamed to be a member of the same human race. But I don't think that vermin changed his name to protect anyone but himself. These people do seem to find each other though and seem very skilled at identifying potential victims.

I’ve seen this happen with other court cases, they change their name just for the court case so there’s never a reported link to their real name.

But as @SchrodingersImmigrant as pointed out, we already have a unique identifier that doesn't rely on name with the national insurance number. We use it to track our pensions, so why not our identity. All they need to do is have nino on records and can always be linked.

@thinkingaboutitall

Tbh I’m not sure what to suggest

I changed my name by deed poll at 19. I had no criminal record, just hated my name and wanted to break free from an abusive family. By making it harder for the few complete scum like this man to change to their names, it fucks over the majority of normal people that change their name for innocent reasons

I wouldn’t say it’s a loophole. I would say the authorities in question need to do their due diligence

If you have a criminal record it should stay with you though. It shouldn't be down to the criminal to disclose it.

I mean a five year old could see the massive flaw in that system

Let's face it, we pay lip service to wanting peadophiles punished. People, usually men can have baby rape and snuff videos and walk free from court. There was a case of a man paying for impoverished women around the world to sexually abuse their children and he walked free. It's said because we don't have the sex offenders programs in prisons. We should be building prisons for such offenders.
This is a loop hole easily filled, but I can't help feeling because peadophilia is a crime which has as many upper class men involved, as it does lower class, we haven't the will to change things. It sickens me when I read that another one has walked free and in the same paper another vulnerable woman, for a non violent/sexual crime, has got a prison sentence.

The id system (or lack if) in uk is mental if you can genuinely just go, change your name and that will show clean criminal checkn(and yake out loan woth basically nothong umless you are foreign🙈)😳

Why is nin seperate entity?