Kayleigh film viewed by millions around world
A HARD-HITTING video about a Leicestershire schoolgirl who was groomed online before being raped and murdered has gone viral.
The film, titled Kayleigh’s Love Story, was watched by more than two million people within the first 48 hours of being posted online.
It details the final moments of 15-year-old Kayleigh Haywood’s life and warns of the danger of online predators.
The multiple award-winning film begins with Kayleigh receiving a flood of affectionate messages from a stranger on October 31, 2015, that continue for two weeks.
The Measham teenager was eventually persuaded to spend the night at Luke Harlow’s house in Ibstock before his neighbour, Stephen Beadman, dragged her into a nearby woodland, where he raped and murdered her.
The bleak film was made by Leicestershire Police in partnership with Kayleigh’s parents to warn of the dangers of grooming and sexual exploitation.
It was posted online at 9am on Tuesday and had been watched by some 1.3 million people the following morning.
Tens of thousands of people took to social media to praise the courage of Kayleigh’s parents for allowing the film to be made, and applauded Leicestershire Police for making it.
Deputy chief constable Roger Bannister said he was overwhelmed by the interest in the film and the reaction since its public launch.
He added: “To have reached so many people and for the film to have been seen by so many in such a short space of time is remarkable.
“It contains a really important message, a message for children and parents alike, and I believe it has the potential to keep many tens of thousands of children safe from the threat posed by predators online. I would urge everyone to watch it.”
The five-minute video, shot by Affixxius Films of Loughborough, was shown to 37,000 secondary school children across Leicestershire at 1,000 controlled screenings by a team of Police Community Support Officers in 2016.
The screenings gave 35 children the courage to come forward and report possible cases of grooming to officers, Leicestershire Police said.
These “disclosures” are now being investigated, the force said.
On April 5 2016, Harlow, 28, pleaded guilty to grooming and two counts of sexual activity.
He was found guilty of false imprisonment following a trial at Nottingham Crown Court on June 28, where he also admitting grooming two separate girls. Harlow was jailed for 12 years. On April 5, Beadman, 29, pleaded guilty to rape and murder.
On June 7, he was also found guilty of false imprisonment and was given a life sentence in which he will serve a minimum of 35 years.
A signed version, an audio described version and versions of the film translated into five languages – Polish, Hindi, Guajarati, Urdu and Punjabi – is available on the police’s YouTube page.
The video is the centrepiece of the force’s on-going CEASE campaign which aims to eradicate the sexual abuse of children in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.