A paedophile sting group has been formed on the Isle of Wight and in one week has been successful in apprehending two men on suspicion of child sexual offences.
The first sting for Wight Rangers resulted in a 22 year old man from Sandown being arrested by police on Saturday afternoon on suspicion of a grooming offence. He has since been released on bail until 27 February, pending further enquiries.
Second sting in a week
The second sting took place on Thursday this week and has resulted in a man in his 50s being held in custody and questioned by police.
Wight Rangers posted this update to their Facebook Page:
Wight Rangers can confirm that today (Thursday) around midday, an IW male believed to be in his early 50s was apprehended by our team, after grooming and arranging to meet who he believed to be a 13 year old boy for sex.
Motivation for the group
OnTheWight spoke with the team at Wight Rangers to understand their motivation in setting up the group.
A spokesperson for the group said,
“The group came about because we collectively felt that there was a growing problem on the Island for online grooming and paedophiles.
“One of the founders brought up the issue after creating a decoy account and being shocked at the ease of which the bait was taken. Since then a small team has rallied to complete the first sting. The core team consist of five people.”
They went on to explain,
“We have had advice from other similar groups and organisations and the police. The police have been mainly supportive, but as expected a little cautious, they would like us to be careful and to keep ourselves and others involved safe.”
Hampshire Constabulary’s position
A spokesperson for the police told OnTheWight,
“In relation to so-called “Paedophile Hunters” – vigilantes who proactively seek to identify alleged paedophiles online and then expose them – Hampshire Constabulary adheres to the national position as outlined by the National Crime Agency’s Child Exploitation & Online Protection (CEOP) command.”
This position is outlined in the following NCA statements:
- While we understand the public’s desire to protect their children from online abuse, we do not encourage action of this kind, which can compromise ongoing investigations into paedophile networks and could spark an abuser to further harm a child if they feel threatened. Those who take this approach to exposing paedophiles could be breaking the law and may find themselves at the centre of an investigation or prosecution. Identifying alleged paedophiles is best left to the police who can ensure vulnerable victims are protected.
- Police forces have reported these cases to CEOP and work with them to investigate the allegations.
- The police rely on the assistance of the public in preventing and detecting crime. Working closely with communities is a vital way in which we gain information, and their active engagement in fighting crime helps us do our job.
- Cases involving child sex abuse are extremely serious and have a huge emotional impact, not only on the victims but on whole families, and the communities in which they take place. We understand the desire to protect children but any member of the public who has information about child sexual abuse, online or otherwise, should get in contact with the police so we can investigate and bring people to justice.
- Revealing the identity of suspected paedophiles gives the suspect the opportunity to destroy evidence before the police can investigate them. It also leads to people who have been identified going missing or raising concerns for their safety. This can divert significant resources into protecting suspects, which would be better invested in investigating, and where there is evidence, prosecuting them.
- If any member of the public has concerns about online grooming, they should report them to their local police, to CEOP at www.ceop.police.uk or to Crimestoppers. If you think a child is at immediate risk of harm, call 999.
Image: esthervargasc under CC BY 2.0
