Pedo Hunter in Area

[Noluckcatchingthemswansthen]

Not sure if this really is an AIBU just looking for some insights if anyone has any!

In the last couple of days a fairly well known ‘Pedophile Hunter’ group has made it known via social media etc that they are in the area where I live. It is a very small rural community and of course rumours have spread like wildfire!

I don’t really have much knowledge about these types of groups - I remember hearing something years ago about them on the news but never really looked into them. A quick google search shows a lot of debate about whether they are helpful or harmful
On the face of it it would seem like they have the best of intentions?! But they can become very violent and do sometimes get it wrong, target the person or wrong address etc

Some people locally are very excited about their presence and some are very concerned

I suppose I am just wondering really if anyone else has had any experience of this in their area and how it turned out?

for AIBU purposes

YABU - they are no threat to the community and only want to help protect children

YANBU - they are vigilante groups who hinder police investigations and often act on local gossip and end up targeting innocent individuals

Thanks for any insights 😊

I hate these groups. What’s to stop them picking on a random innocent person, putting it all over the internet. That person could go on to be found completely innocent without a stain on their character but people will always say “no smoke without fire” or will never find out they were innocent.

These groups could hand their “evidence” quietly to the police but then they wouldn’t get the attention and social Media clicks they crave

Nobody on this thread is saying we don’t care about children and are in favour of pedos! But these groups have ulterior motives (ego) and often hinder cases never mind all the chaos and trauma they cause with mistaken identities, innocent family members etc.

Im sorry about what happened to your niece but these groups aren’t the answer. The idea of them exposing her abuser probably appeals to you but in reality their actions could prevent a prosecution.

As I said earlier I’m also very skeptical about people taking it upon themselves to engage in these conversations, unasked and unmonitored. They are weirdos.

My uncle's house almost got torched because of one of these knuckle dragging thug groups. They whipped up a frenzy locally, which cuminated with posts of 'There's a nonce at 12 Rose Grove'
Cue a massive group descending on the house, which was 12 Rose WAY, ready to burn the place to the ground with him and his young family in it. The only thing that saved him was that someone who was friendly with him noticed his personalised number plate and alerted the nutters that they weren't even in the right place

I think you are on to something here, I hadn’t thought about it from this angle. I know that police officers/staff are only allowed to work in this department for a limited period of time due to the distressing nature of the crimes. They also have enforced breaks, welfare checks and access to therapy. Thinking about it, something sits very badly about someone who is doing this for a hobby and attention.

@Noluckcatchingthemswansthen I was looking them up, he is a creepy looking fecker isn't he ? And he is trying to flog cbd oil so # Ad 😀

But some people would argue that young girls are at risk because the police don’t have the time or resources to pursue the countless men who groom or target them. For every man who is caught and prosecuted, dozens remain under the radar.

Yeah he gives me the major heebie jeebies I hope I don’t actually bump into him in the shop or something - I’m not very good at hiding my facial expressions 😲

I was reading some of "communities" fb pages they all seem to have their own issues and in fighting.

The problem is people who are intelligent and can look at cases with disinterest aren’t going to be the sorts to sign up to these groups. It’s more the kinds of people who like violence and the thrill of confrontation.

@Dappy777 The argument for it still doesn't detract from what I said.

https://news.sky.com/story/boy-16-admits-killing-man-he-believed-was-paedophile-in-isle-of-sheppey-attack-13494806?dicbo=v2-yaPKR6t