Dark Justice hit back at police snub
GROUP RESOLVED TO STAY PUT AND FIGHT
Reporter PAEDOPHILE hunters Dark justice have issued a defiant message to a police chief who told them to “leave it to the professionals”.
On Friday, senior officers warned the vigilante group could be putting child abuse investigations at risk.
The claim came as home secretary Amber Rudd announced £20m funding to extend an initiative where undercover detectives operated in internet chat rooms and forums used by suspected offenders – a tactic perfected by Tyneside-based Dark Justice.
Detective Superintendent Steven Woollett, of the Kent and Essex serious crime directorate, then warned vigilante groups could make paedophiles more evasive and said they should leave the job to the police.
But one member of Dark Justice has hit back and said the group are here to stay.
He said: “We’re not going anywhere. They can sit there in their ivory towers all they want and tell us not to do it, call us amateurs, but while there are still predators out there in their hundreds, preying on children, we will exist. “We went out last night and caught someone, that was our response to the comments. They can warn us all they want. “We have won a High Court ruling to say we can continue and we will continue until they put us in prison or until we die. “They say, ‘leave it to us,’ but we left it to you with Jimmy Savile, with Rotherham, with Rolf Harris. “The so-called experts had their chance. It’s time for them to admit we have shown them something Dark Justice member that works and they want to jump on the bandwagon.”
Dark Justice claim on their website to have helped snare 104 sex crime suspects, leading to 50 convictions.
Earlier this year they were handed the green light to continue their work following a landmark legal ruling.
Defence lawyers acting on behalf of alleged paedophiles caught by the group argued that evidence collected by such organisations should not be used in court due to the way it is gathered.
But the judge said there was no legal requirement for the activities of the group to be subjected to controls.
And one man of Dark Justice labelled the police comments “ridiculous” and questioned if the newly announced funding would be enough.
He said: “99.9% of the public have nothing but love for what we do and we’re grateful for the support. They are not fooled by these words. £20m might sound like a lot but spread out around the country and across all the different police forces, it’s not that much.”
The £20m funding, through the Police Transformation Fund, will see police forces jointly monitor forums and share intelligence in collaboration with the National Crime Agency Child Exploitation and Online Protection command.