Is this guy a peado or am I being paranoid?

[purpledaze24]

I take my 3 yo DS to our local play park around 3 mornings a week. Often when we’re there there’s this man there sitting on a bench with his dog, but never with a child, he’s always just with the dog. The play park isn’t enclosed from the wider park so he didn’t stand out that much at first but the last few times I’ve seen him he seems to be taking pictures with his phone of the kids playing. He’s pretty blatant about it, not trying to hide it. He also has an attachment on his phone, which looks like it’s over the camera lens. I’ve never got close enough to properly inspect it but it looks like a small black square over the lens and sticking up at the top of the phone. I’m wondering if this could be a zoom…he looks very normal (not that that means anything I know), early 30s, good-looking, well-dressed. I’ve never seen anyone challenge him - maybe because he’s so blatant about it & the park is often busy & people probably assume he has a child playing who he’s taking pictures of. He definitely doesn’t btw. I’ve seen him leave and arrive before and it’s always just him and the dog. I know that, technically he’s not breaking any laws. Anyone can takes pictures of anyone in a public place but he’s giving me the creeps. I cannot think of any possible reason why he’d so regularly be taking photos of random children other than that he’s a peadophile. There’s also nothing else he could be taking pics of, his dog is by his side. AIBU? What should I do? I don’t feel comfortable challenging him

Classic MN

😭😭 fgs

Do you know what @UsingAMansNameInAWomensWorld i have to admire your commitment to defending your fellow gender 😄

Not all men are paedophiles but some are and its scary being a parent, trying to protect your kids in this world - i'm sure we can at least agree on that x

It is classic MN

Start calling people "men" because they don't agree with your "all men are trash" stance

I'm not a man BTW but ya know. Just a woman who doesn't think labelling men trying to just exist as paedophile is helpful...

Your username and your men's defence league stance makes me think that youre a man

Either way 😭 it's whatever now

Yep, definitely nasty suspicious behaviour. If he's just out with his dog, he needs to sit somewhere else. I'd get together with other mums and ask him why is he photographing their children, I have seen this behaviour at our local park, and a group of mums called him out. He scuttled off sharpish. I'd also tell the police, I know what he's doing technically isn't illegal, but he may be known to them.

My name is literally because of this dumb stance on MN of calling posters men if they don't follow the "party line"

Thinking a man just sitting in the park, only possibly doing something wrong, and not thinking we should just call them weird because they sit on a park bench in a public park does not make me MDL...

He's not sitting IN a child's play park

He's just sitting in the public park

You can't make him move!

Yeah obviously a paedo 🙄

No return to the post, is this just a little fantasy to fill time in the holidays? Being able to see his zoom attachment on his phone was a particularly nice touch.

There must be plenty of other benches where he isn't in easy sight of the play area.

Ah the op ‘posts’ to wind em all up…. Then runs….

And doesn't actually know that he's taking pictures. He could be doing absolutely anything with the phone. OP hasn't got close enough to know for sure.

Of course it's another "light the touch paper and walk away" poster

It's the holidaysb😒

So?

He can sit where he wants.

Yup.

He can sit where he wants.

He can hold his phone, if he wants.

While I do think it would be "creepy", he could photograph children, if he wanted - based on the OP's description of the device attached to his phone, it seems very unlikely that he was photographing children.

I can completely understand why non-photographers might think a device attached to a camera's lense might be a zoom, but even the smallest zoom adapters for cellphones are several inches long and look like mini-telescopes.

The adapter the OP is describing is almost certainly a macro lense, used for extreme close ups of things that are within a few inches (perhaps up to a foot) from the camera.

It might look suspicious but, if it is a macro lense (and although I don't know every product available, I'm not sure what else it even could be) then it would make it impossible that he was taking pictures from the bench.

If the OP is still concerned - and to sound non-accusatory - I'd approach him and ask if it was a macro lense and if its any good, maybe asking to see some of the results. That'd give the OP further peice of mind without unreasonably implying the guy is a pedophile...

Some time ago there was a story in the news about police looking for a man who was seen photographing children. So I think the police would be interested. Best to report him to the police

I googled it. Persistent photographing other people's children without permission can be classed as harassment and the parents can report it to the police. This is an old thread. I hope this man was reported

Stand blatantly taking pictures of him and give them to the police!

I googled it. Persistent photographing other people's children against parents wishes is classed as harassment and can be reported to the police. I wish I came across this thread sooner and I wish the OP just googled it before posting on Mumsnet

Paedant.😆

Googled it. Persistent photographing other people's children against parents wishes is classed as harassment and can be reported to the police. This is an old thread. Hope the OP comes back on and tells us what happened and if he was reported reported

I know people say the police wouldn't be interested, but how would you feel if you are right, and a child goes missing, something which you, or the police, could have prevented?

Personally, I would have no qualms about approaching him and having a word. I would just say something like 'Hi there, I hope you don't mind me saying this, but I've noticed that you come to this part of the park regularly with your dog, and appear to be taking pictures of the children. I don't want to cause offence, but you might want to think twice about doing this, as if other people notice, it could result in someone thinking you're a paedophile, and you could end up being attacked if word gets around, which I'm sure is the last thing you'd want'. If he is one, it's unlikely he'll come back, and if he's not, then I also think it would be enough to put him off returning, simply for fear of word getting around that there is a suspected paedo in the park.

But it doesn't sound like he's photographing children, persistently or at all.

As PPs have said, based on OP's description, the accessory on his phone couldn't be a zoom and sounds like it must be a macro lens.

Very disturbing that you think it’s okay for random
men to take photos of children.

op keep and eye on it and report it if you think necessary.

I googled it. Persistent photographing other people's children against the parents wishes is classed as harassment and can be reported to the police. There is some debate about the type of lense he was using and that it won't be strong enough to zoom on the kids. If I had seen this I would of googled it before posting on Mumsnet. If he is innocent then no harm in reporting to the police. I hope the OP comes back on and updates this thread. It's been a while since the OP posted it.