My friend is 49 year old and is talking to young boys advice

[Davidldn]

Ok, I am writing this post because I am in a dilemma. My friend Asked to stay at my house while on holiday, he is here now, I am 30, he is 49, man. He brought up a conversation which I found very uncomfortable to hear. He told me that he found a boy (in my eyes he’s a boy) of 15 years of age on a dating app, he talks about liking 14/15 year old boys a lot, which I find repulsive, to me this is still a child!. He has a 15 year olds number on His phone m. I said why did you take his number! That is wrong. He argued with me for 2 hrs stating taking a 14/15 years old number is not wrong..and it’s the same as saying liking men is wrong, that’s not the same thing I said. He said that he is talking to him because he is waiting for him to turn 16. I said, the that fact that you have taken the boys number who is underage at this time and you are talking to him is wrong, because you intentions are obvious. This is a 49 year old guy, I don’t want to judge but these sounds so close to him being a lot of concerning tendencies. Maybe I am wrong he is staying in my house until Wednesday. I really feel uncomfortable that he is in my house to be honest.

Regardless of the fact that he is only talking to them, those boys are still at risk as they are under age.

The legal age of consent is 16, if there is potential for a person under that age to be exploited, it needs reporting to the authorities. This is s huge safeguarding warning and you are putting that boy, and possibly more and younger, at risk.

Just think how those boys parents are might feel knowing that their son is talking to a much older man and no one did anything about it.

He told me that he found a boy (in my eyes he’s a boy) of 15 years of age on a dating app,

You need to report the dating App to the police. The app has a duty of care as a technology platform. Ensure the police take that seriously, because social media dating apps are fast becoming the disease of our society. It gives people like him unfettered access to commit his crime unchecked.

Why do you need to ask? Don't you have your own moral compass?

There’s only one thing to do and that’s call the police!

Why do you need to ask? Don't you have your own moral compass?

This.

This is gross, report him!

Everything everyone else has said. I worked in the court system dealing with these cases for years. Best advice from the police is not to doubt your instincts and to report someone as they would much rather investigate and find it unsubstantiated than you enable a predator.

Why do you need to ask advice surely it's pretty obvious what you need to do? Report him. Get him out of your house.

It needs reporting.

As ever, making a report and raising a concern is not someone judging (in the professional assessment side of things) or deciding guilt. It is providing those professionals who are trained to investigate, monitor, judge and assess with information they can work with.

To have the information you have and not report it would be negligent.

I don't know the law in the UK but isn't reporting a paedophile criminal in itself?

By which I mean not reporting while you know he is

Report him before it's too late.