Gardaí to get new vigilante policies Guidelines aim to calm ‘paedophile hunter’ groups
GARDA bosses are drafting a policy document outlining how officers should deal with vigilante groups, the Irish Daily Mail can reveal.
The move comes following the recent activities of groups such as Silent Justice, the self-styled ‘paedophile hunters’. The new policy is due to be circulated to all officers within a week.
The Mail understands that gardaí will be advised on how to ‘calm’ situations involving vigilantes. Officers will also be asked to ‘encourage and remind’ members of the public involved in vigilante-type behaviour that it is better to provide them with information about alleged sexual offences against children than to confront individuals directly.
Gardaí are also to be instructed to take a ‘hard line’ and arrest vigilantes if they are involved in criminal behaviour, such as incitement to hatred.
On November 19, Silent Justice published videos of two men in Drogheda, Co. Louth, who the vigilante group claimed had sent ‘extremely disturbing sexual images’ to children. Silent Justice said it had received the images after members of the group posed as children aged between 10 and 14 years old during an online sting operation.
One man confronted in Drogheda was accosted outside his home. Sources say some members of the vigilante group called into his neighbours to ‘warn them’ about him. A senior source said behaviour like this can be viewed as ‘incitement to hatred’ and could result in criminal charges.
‘If vigilantes are involved in incitement to hatred, which there is a possible case for in Drogheda, people could face criminal charges,’ said a source. ‘Also, vigilantes should ensure they do not falsely imprison people or trespass. There is no suggestion this has happened, but these situations are not something gardaí believe are helpful to public safety.’
In the two cases in Drogheda, both men gave voluntary statements to gardaí under caution and investigations are ongoing. One of the men, who was accosted at a bus depot in Drogheda, handed over a laptop to officers voluntarily.
The source said: ‘There is always a concern with vigilante-type behaviour. There could be an issue that these two men were not actually grooming young girls whatsoever – in fact they were communicating with a 35-year-old woman. The law will have to be examined closely in these cases.’
It is possible for a person to be charged with attempting to groom what they believed to be a child; however, this charge is rare.
Concerns have been raised about Silent Justice after a man in the North died by suicide after being confronted by the group in August.
The confrontation with the father of two was streamed online. He died two days later.
Speaking to the Mail earlier this week, the head of Silent Justice in Ireland, James O’Neill – who is not using his real name – said: ‘There are thousands of paedophiles in Ireland, they are on every street corner.
‘Ireland needs to wake up – these men are everywhere. It’s all online now... This is their sexual orientation, they are attracted to children and that will never ever change.’
Earlier this month, a video was posted online of RTÉ producer Kieran Creaven being confronted in Leeds by the UK vigilante group Predator Exposure. It is alleged he contacted what he thought was a 13-year-old girl via Facebook.
The 55-year-old has since been charged with attempting to engage or incite sexual activity with a girl under 16. He will appear at Leeds Crown Court on December 18.
‘Could be viewed as incitement’