The Paedophile Hunter

[DolphinsNose]

Anyone else watching?

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

Or do you think you're just the "greater, all knowing god of wisdom" that can comment on a thread about a programme they haven't even watched? Sort of above all us mere mortals that may have, hey! watched it and even experienced it in real life. WELL, all power to you, yes?

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

I only know what you've written here, Kate. I have put my real life experience down, and frankly, it's felt like you haven't listened to it.

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

Kate, are you ok?

I don't want to argue with you anymore really. Have you had experience of this?

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

I'm concerned you're actually not ok now Kate - and I mean that.

I joined this thread because of my personal experience in this - and I'll spell that out for you.

A very good friend of mine's husband had the family home raided because he had been doing the exact thing that the men the "vigilante" on that tv show had been catching men doing. He had been targeting and grooming girls online - but he was caught in a police sting - they ere monitoring the website.

After he was arrested, it transpired that not only had he been abusing his own children, but that he had been grooming my 5 year old daughter. We all trusted him. The shock was immense.

The police sting operation was not a million miles from what the man on that TV programme did - he did not target and beat up weirdos. He passed the information to the police and most were prosecuted and convicted.

Perhaps you get my interest in this now?

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

• Basically a police sting saved my daughter from abuse.

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

Ok - but don't you think this is something the media should address?

You hadn't even watched the programme, but you just link to the "paedofinder general" vid which is pretty disrespectful to those of us who are (still) dealing with the fall out of these predators - who are so fucking cunning, you wouldn't believe. The fucking hoops we had to jump through to get that man convicted - and do you know, he didn't even go away for his paedo crimes - he got a suspended sentence for that

He was put away for a different crime (rather like Al Capone). It's really shit. Really shit.

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

^ But at least this one is prison - which is morethan canbe said for a lot of them.

One famous convicted paedophile in our area was given a suspended sentence (despite being a member of the Wonderland Gang, and having spent time in prison) and wasn't even put on the sex offenders register.

I know it all sounds so bloody Daily Mail, which I hate, but that is actually true. That one was reported in the local paper because he was advertising for chidren's tuition.

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

Thank you, Kate. Apology accepted.

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

Oh, and you know what as well? He was moderately well known in certain circles, because of his work. So there was stuff online about "how it was all a set up" "the establishment were just bringing him down" etc - and I wanted to just write - NO! It's all fucking true! We know it is! The Police raided his home and he admitted it!- but I couldn't because we were told we couldn't be seen to "prejudice" the trial. His defence were watching all our social media - we couldn't say anything. In the meantime - he was allowed to say anything he liked! He put my friend though hell. It was hell.

It is so, so difficult to bring these men to justice.

[Sabrinnnnnnnna]

He was saying crap like "I'm looking forward to my day in court, so I can clear my name, these are monstrous lies against me" and shit.

Ugh. I do hate him. I even have wished him dead. Sorry. But he's apparently in a Cat A prison now so...

[differentnameforthis]

Sabrinnnnnnnna So sorry for what you have been through. I hope everyone is ok!.

[Aeroflotgirl]

Yes indy how can you comment if you haven't watched the programme. Yes I disagree with them exposing tge paedophiles on social media, their families are innocent and could be children in those paedophile's families. The police are short in resources, he does help the Police to secure convictions. He should just pass the information to the Police, no exposing.

[2minsofyourtime]

We owe it to our daughters to recognise this

I have to take serious issue with this. Boys also need protecting, child abuse happened to all genders

[flipflopsandcottonsocks]

I agree 2mins we need to protect our CHILDREN, regardless of gender.

[southeastastra]

this programme was a real eye opener and so bloody depressing. i know it's entrapment but really these idiots walk into it so stupidly. someone should be paid to do this job

[DecisionsDecisionss]

Well I think more work to protect children from paedophiles is needed. The law and sentencing in this country is ridiculous. I've donated to Stinson website, he is hoping to fund future work, ie improved filming capabilities etc.

There are three issues with the police re paedophiles - funding in this area, the importance the public/politicians place on it (ie we don't demand enough) and whether the police take it seriously (look at Rotherham...)

Stinson has shown that with few resources paedophiles can be caught, it just needs to be policed properly then he won't need to do it.

[justiceofthePeas]

Ok. Let assume Stintsons motives are sound. He wants to catch paedophiles. That is in itself a good aim.
I still question the use of facebook and the motivation of the tv producers.

I can fully relate to the horror and fury people feel, I think born partly out if how helpless you feel when the scale of the problem is exposed. I worked on a place where there were lots of children. A colleague who shared the same building but did not work directly with children, whom I also knew socially, turned out to be an extremely serious and predatory paedophile. He was caught by a police sting (they do happen) and got a lengthy sentence.
I was furious. Absolutely seething with anger and hatred for what he had done to an extent that surprised me.

But that still does not mean I agree with the kind of treatment indi in particular has been getting on this thread.
It is possible to abhor the crime, the criminal and to still not agree with sensationalist tv.

having had training in CP one of the things that was emphasised strongly was convictions are hard to obtain so nothing must be done that can jeopardise a conviction.

So to turn it around, how could this be approached better? Appealing less to an emotional reaction and more to a practical solution that reduces potential harm to children?

The anger we feel does us no good unless we have somewhere to channel it and I don't think vigilantes (or accusing people on a thread who don't agree with you of collusion) are the way to go.