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Thread: The Vigilante Justice Thread

  1. #451
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    Quote Originally Posted by KambingSociety View Post
    I say pardon both of them and give the killers them mercy. I understand why the 17 year old boy had to kill Fife. He was pressured to do something about it or get blamed for dropping the ball on his sister. He hears an allegation and he had to kill immediately because he felt his sister was not going to be treated fairly in court. We as a society need to stop dehumanizing vigilantes like the 17 year old boy and understand where he is coming from. I get we like to call vigilantes cold blooded people but these people who do the killings believed that their actions were collateral damage for the good of the victims.
    Jfc I HATE READING YOUR FUCKING VIGILANTE DEFENCE POSTS


    These stories are fucked up enough as it is without having to read shit like this.

    Also, you scare me. Sometimes you sound like you're talking yourself out of or into doing something in real life. So please go & see a counsellor & talk about whatever it was that started you grappling with this vigilante/hero fixation, because I don't wanna see your MDS posts in the news under the headline "SELF-STYLED, HERO-OBSESSED VIGILANTE SERIAL KILLER LEAVES TRAIL OF VICTIMS AFTER MAKING BIZARRE POSTS ON DEATH FORUM ABOUT PAEDOPHILES, BESTIALITY & URINE-DRINKING CULTS"

  2. #452
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    Bangladesh: eight lynched over false rumours of child sacrifices
    Police use loudspeakers to counter online reports that children were being killed for bridge-building project



    Eight people have been killed in vigilante lynchings in Bangladesh, sparked by rumours on social media of children being kidnapped and sacrificed as offerings for the construction of a mega-bridge, police said on Wednesday.

    The victims – who include two women – were targeted by angry mobs over the rumours, spread mostly on Facebook, that said human heads were required for the massive $3bn project, police chief Javed Patwary said in Dhaka. “We have analysed every single case of these eight killings. Those who were killed by lynching mobs – no one was a child kidnapper.”

    More than 30 other people have been attacked in connection with the rumours.

    Patwary said police stations across the country had been ordered to crack down on rumours, and at least 25 YouTube channels, 60 Facebook pages and 10 websites have been shut down.

    Mobs are killing Muslims in India. Why is no one stopping them?
    Rana Ayyub
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    Local media said the killings began after reports circulated of a young man allegedly found carrying the severed head of a child in the northern district of Netrokona.

    Among the latest victims was a mother of two, Taslima Begum, who was beaten to death in front of a Dhaka school on Saturday by a mob that suspected her of being a child kidnapper, a police official said.

    A deaf man was also beaten to death outside the capital that day while trying to visit his daughter.

    Police said eight people have been arrested over Begum’s murder, and at least five others detained for their role in spreading the rumour on social media.

    Police are so concerned about the deadly fallout in rural towns that officers are trying to counter the web rumour using loudspeakers. “We are building awareness about the rumour and ask people not to get panicked,” a police chief in north-western Chapainawabganj district said.

    Some 6.1 million Ansar paramilitary security forces and village guards have also been asked to warn villagers, Ansar major general Kazi Sharif Kaikobad was quoted as saying.

    People who were begging on the streets were so fearful of being lynched that they were wearing their identity cards to prove they were not strangers to a particular area, local media reported.

    The lynchings could be “a sign of people’s distrust in the existing law and order system”, Dhaka University sociology professor Monirul Islam said. But he did not rule out the possibility that some people were deliberately trying to trigger panic or unrest in the community.

    The bridge – which is set to be Bangladesh’s biggest – is being built on the Padma, a major tributary of the Ganges.

    Rumours of human sacrifices being required for a bridge in Bangladesh have surfaced before, with several people attacked in 2010 over another structure, according to local media.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...ild-sacrifices

  3. #453
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    https://www.mylloydminsternow.com/33...nte-behaviour/

    The Lloydminster RCMP is advising against residents taking criminal matters into their own hands. Mounties say that as property crimes continue to affect the community, vigilantism will not be accepted and can have personal consequences. Const. Michael Hagel says that properly dealing with criminals is unsafe for the average person.

    “What we don’t want is we don’t want people taking the law into their own hands,” says Const. Hagel. “It’s not safe for members of the community deciding that their stolen property is more important than someone else’s safety. We’re really pushing away from you taking matters into your own hands; let the police do their work.”

    Const Hagel says that police members are properly trained to handle situations involving criminals. RCMP members are able to make proper risk assessments and react appropriately. Hagel says that getting involved with stopping criminals without this expertise may lead to more trouble.

    “A person who’s acting emotionally is not thinking rationally, they’re just reacting. That leads to more and more trouble, more people get hurt, and more property gets damaged.”

    Consequences for vigilante behaviour can vary depending on the circumstances. Assaults or death can lead to homicide or assault charges, while reckless driving can lead to dangerous driving charges. Police are the only ones with the training and authority to handle enforcing the law and operate with public safety in mind. Const. Hagel assures residents that the RCMP currently has crime reduction strategies in place.

    “You’re seeing a lot more uniformed police officers out on the street. It’s very important to let us do our job. We’ll take care of any property issues. Any crime issues, we will handle it.”

    It’s advised that anyone who sees suspicious or criminal activity reports it to the Lloydminster RCMP.

  4. #454
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    https://ph.news.yahoo.com/6-dead-5-d...161400235.html

    More
    SIX people have been killed in a span of five days in Talisay City.

    Three bore marks of vigilante-style killings, while the other three were killed in a buy-bust on Thursday night in Sitio San Lucas, Barangay Biasong, Talisay City.

    With the three successive killings by unknown perpetrators, Police Regional Office 7 Director Debold Sinas and the City Mayor of Talisay Gerald “Samsam” Gullas both quashed assumptions that vigilantes were behind the macabre killings.

    On Friday morning, July 26, 2019, residents of Sitio Bogo, Barangay Campo 4, Talisay City woke up to the ghastly sight of a man tied to an electric post with his face wrapped with masking tape.

    He was later identified as Jerh Sigue, 27, a welder and resident of Sitio Sombria, Lawaan II, Talisay City.

    Sigue sustained several gunshot wounds in the different parts of his body. A placard was tied to his neck with the words “Undang na lagi mo og dili gani, kamo na isunod tulisan, drug pusher ug killer/drug lords.” (You had better stop or else you will be next. Robbers, drug pushers and killers/drug lords.)

    His death was the second this week. On Monday, July 22, residents living under the bridge of Mananga II at the South Road Properties also woke up to the horrible sight of a dead man hanging from the bridge.

    The victim was identified as 41-year-old Reynante Otero. He bore gunshot wounds in his body while his face was covered with a signage that read “Ayaw ko sunda, tulisan ko” (Don’t imitate me. I’m a thief). He was an alleged notorious robber in the area.

    On Thursday, July 25, Jimbo Gadiano, 33, was also found dead. Lying face down and hogtied on a vacant lot in Barangay Lagtang, the body, though, did not bear any placard or warning statement.

    No vigilantes

    Sinas and Gullas in separate interviews Friday, asserted that “there are no vigilantes in Talisay.”

    Sinas said the three killings were related but were not acts of vigilantes.

    “We are more inclined on the motive that this is a result of an internal dispute between members of a drug syndicate in Cebu. That group is now suspecting that they have members who are also agents of the police since their leaders were easily pinpointed,” he said.

    Sinas said the killings of the three weare connected.

    “This is related. All of them are involved in drugs. Sigue was also a suspect of a murder and homicide case. Jerh Sigue’s live-in partner, whom I will not name, was also the former mistress of Steve Go, who died in Mandaue City, which connects them there,” Sinas said.

    “Go’s drug network was replaced by Girlie Luage, who died during a drug bust operation conducted by the Cebu Provincial Intelligence Branch,” he added.

    Mandaue City Jail detainee Go was shot by another inmate in the middle of a betting game in June 2018.

    Sinas said members of the drug syndicate are just trying to mislead the police’s investigation through the death of the three.

    Sinas then said he already instructed Talisay City Police Chief Police Major Orlando Carag Jr. to file a case against their identified drug personalities before they would conduct a drug raid against them.

    “We will dismantle this group. These are the desperate moves of their second layer leaders. We are checking and consolidating on their base,” he said.

    He also said this group has contacts in Manila; however, he refused to divulge yet its identity pending the ongoing investigation.

    Buy-bust deaths

    As killings vigilante-style took place, three more were added to the list of suspected drug users and personalities who died in shootouts between the police and alleged drug suspects in Talisay City.

    On Thursday, July 25, three died in a buy-bust in sitio San Lucas, Barangay Biasong.

    They were identified as Vernabe Suello, Julie Daugdaug and his brother Anisito. Julie was the subject of the buy-bust.

    Prior surveillance was conducted before the operation was conducted after police received reports of the rampant illegal activities in the area.

    Still safe

    Gullas assured his constituents that the city is safe.

    In a statement posted on his Facebook account, Gullas said he trusts that the City Police “will find the perpetrators of these murders.”

    Gullas also praised the act of a concerned citizen in reporting the rampant illegal activities in the area.

    “I take this as a good sign that our constituents are no longer afraid to take the risk of reporting illegal activities,” Gullas said.

    Carag, for his part, warned Talisaynons and those who have illegal activities in the area that they will run after them and put them in prison.

    “The City is peaceful for those who have no illegal activities. For those who have illegal activities, especially those who engage our police, we are ready to face them,” Carag said in a mix of Cebuano and Tagalog. (WBS/from FMD and AYB of SuperBalita Cebu/VLA)

  5. #455
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    https://allafrica.com/stories/201907250622.html

    Police have on numerous occasions cautioned members of the public to refrain from taking the law into their own hands lest they find themselves committing serious crimes, wittingly or unwittingly.

    Thulani Mthiyane was on the list of police's wanted suspects when he was arrested in November last year for stabbing a 33-year old victim two months earlier.

    Further investigations linked Mthiyane to a 2016 incident of mob justice where a 26-year old male victim was set alight at N17 informal settlement in Springs.

    On 22 July 2019, the Springs Regional Court found Mthiyane guilty of incitement to commit murder for which he will spend 15 years behind bars, and 3 years imprisonment for assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

    In a separate case following another bout of quality investigation, Garry Viljoen, 36, was found guilty and sentenced a week ago in the Springs Regional Court to 15 years imprisonment for murder and 3 years for attempted murder.

    Police investigations proved that Viljoen was behind the November 2018 murder of 37-year old David Pretorius who succumbed to injuries in February 2019, and the attempted murder of Pieter Rossouw.



    Police successfully traced Viljoen and arrested him in April 2019 in Richards Bay, Kwa-Zulu Natal.

    Meanwhile, Devon police have also been commended for seeing justice served after a 61-year old male suspect was found guilty of attempted murder related to domestic violence in the Nigel Magistrate Court on 19 July 2019. Thomas Mayisa on 04 September 2016, fled after attacking his wife with an axe in their house at Impumelelo informal settlement in Devon. The victim is now disabled due to injuries sustained during the attack. He will serve 5 years in prison.

    Gauteng Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Elias Mawela, has expressed his appreciation to the Detectives in Gauteng for heeding the call to make quality investigations a norm. "The high number of arrests we make weekly remain futile until those arrested suspects are successfully convicted and given appropriate sentences. It is thus pleasing to note the daily convictions and multiple long term sentences emanating from water-tight investigations. This will surely take us a long way in winning the war on crime and ridding our communities of hardened criminals," cited General Mawela.

    South Africa
    Hero Dog That Took Bullet to Protect Family Is On the Mend
    A dog that took a bullet to protect his family from would-be hijackers is on the mend - and his owner can't wait to have… Read more ?

  6. #456
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    https://www.newtimes.co.rw/lifestyle...ut-mob-justice




    Having grown up in a small village surrounded by relatives and neighbours who spent their time in drinking joints, Walter made a vow to never touch alcohol. And indeed he stuck to his word.

    His mum left her marital home when he was six years old. As he went through the cultural practices that separated boys from men it was obvious to all that he would be different. He never ever touched something that did not belong to him, he was respectful of the young and old, was helpful in every situation and to. He had a slogan ‘do good and walk away’.

    How did this young man, now a father of two, find himself in trouble? A small gang of thieves had invaded and terrorised villagers for a while and so all were waiting for the day they would catch a thief red-handed. The day came and Walter happened to be a friend to one of them; they say ‘show me your friends and I will tell you who you are’. To those watching, he was the innocent, different young man, but when the sun set he would share a cup of tea with the bad boys.

    A man who had stolen from a home the previous night faced resistance and ended up with a cut and blood that betrayed him the following morning. That is how he was caught and led the village security team to Walter, whom he had wanted to sell a stolen music system. Walter in turn guided them to where he took the items and indeed they were found buried in the ground. Four young men were tied up together and led to the police station while being beaten with iron bars, pelted with stones and being kicked and punched.

    Due to the fact that Walter kept to himself and spent his days either at construction sites or on the farm, some of the people did not know him and on seeing him tied up with the thief assumed he was too.

    Walter almost got lynched because he was in contact with someone who was deemed troublesome by villagers.

    If you have ever been mugged, robbed or lost a precious item, you will agree with me that thieves are disgusting and in places where the system is presumed unfair, some people do take the law in their hands and personally deal with the culprit.

    In many countries where mob justice occurs, the act is illegal but happens because the public is frustrated by the system that releases some of these bad people without substantial reprimand.

    I hate thieves with a passion but my lesson from this incident is that mob justice is never a solution; it could take an innocent life and cause more pain. The best thing to do when we identify suspicious characters or people who want to take away the peace in our small parish or cell is to alert state organs and continue to trust that they will do their work.

  7. #457
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    https://www.columbian.com/news/2019/...f-vigilantism/

    NEW YORK — It’s been 38 years since a man named Ken Rex McElroy was shot to death by an angry crowd in the dusty farming community of Skidmore, Mo. And for 38 years, the case has remained unsolved.

    McElroy was widely regarded as a gun-toting bully who menaced the community. For years residents watched him wiggle out of one jam with the law after another. They became increasingly disenchanted with the legal system and took the law into their own hands. As many as 60 people witnessed his murder but no one implicated anyone.

    Israeli filmmaker Avi Belkin was looking for an interesting story to base a documentary and stumbled onto the McElroy case in a library. He was intrigued by the murder but also fascinated by what came after it — a wave of violence in Skidmore.

    “I decided to do a portrait of this small town but also explore the origin of violence in American society through that,” Belkin said. “Why is it continuing? And what’s the price you pay for vigilante culture?”

    The answer is in “No One Saw a Thing,” a six-episode meditation on what happens when a small town finds itself outside the law. It airs Thursdays on Sundance TV starting Aug. 1.

    Belkin, a rising filmmaker who has been praised for the new film “Mike Wallace Is Here,” spoke to as many living participants in Skidmore as possible, as well as law enforcement and McElroy’s family. Though residents have grown sick of the media, Belkin somehow earned access.

    “I figured it was the first time that an Israeli was ever in that small town,” he said. “In a way, the fact that I was an outsider allowed me to get the story told to me by the people because they really felt they had no judgment on the case. I think they were tired of Americans having prejudged the town.”

    As he poked around the town’s skeletons, Belkin found a legacy of violence following McElroy’s slaying: a townswoman stomped to death by her boyfriend, a 20-year-old man who vanished into thin air and the slaying of a pregnant woman whose fetus was cut from her womb. While none of the cases were directly related to the McElroy murder, Belkin saw tentacles of violence stretching from that 1981 killing.

    “The message that was sent to that community on that day is that if you have a problem, you solve it with violence. And that just perpetuates itself later on in future generations,” he said. “I think that’s the message that subconsciously Americans are getting and not completely understanding the effect of it.”

    American struggle
    McElroy’s death and the collective town silence that followed have been chronicled in a book, “In Broad Daylight,” which was made into a TV movie, and the film “Without Mercy,” as well as several podcasts.

    After Belkin first spotted the story on Skidmore, he flew to the town about 80 miles northwest of Kansas City, Mo., and started filming. He edited his footage down to an 8-minute clip in order to gin up interest from producers.

    Marci Wiseman and Jeremy Gold, co-presidents of Blumhouse Television, were instantly intrigued and bid for the project on the spot. They said Belkin’s approach was timely and representative of an American struggle.

    “If you dropped a pin in the dead center of the country, you couldn’t get more dead center in America than Skidmore, Mo.,” Gold said. “It was a no-brainer for us.”

    Both executives also thought it was a perfect fit as they move the Blumhouse brand away from horror toward more provocative, complex fare, including “Sharp Objects” and “The Loudest Voice.”

    “It’s a really cautionary tale about what happens when you abandon the rule of law,” Wiseman said. “In our current time, there is this tendency for anger and mob-think. This looks at the corrosiveness of what that does to a community.”

    With financial backing secure, Belkin returned more than half a dozen times to Skidmore, staying for a week or two each time and doing interviews. A small army of researchers went through old TV news footage and newspaper archives.

    “No One Saw a Thing” beautifully mixes intimate portraiture, re-creations using Super 16 format and sweeping shots of the town, captured by drones to show the town’s isolation.

    “I felt showing how small that community is, and how isolated it is, is a really important part of the story. That’s what happens a lot of the time in small towns in America. They govern themselves, in a way,” he said.

    Belkin isn’t worried that his documentary series will reopen wounds in Skidmore — they really haven’t healed since 1981.

    “I think very early on I let everybody know that I’m not here to do a whodunit series,” he said. “It’s about closure. It’s like you have this wound that will not close and then it’s infecting other places in your body.”

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    https://news.yahoo.com/mexico-vigila...225511811.html

    MEXICO CITY (AP) — Prosecutors in southern Guerrero state say the leader of one of Mexico's most violent vigilante groups has died.

    The state prosecutors' office said Friday that Tranquilino Palatzin was drunk when he fell and hit his head on a rock.

    He was the leader of the Peace and Justice group of the township of Chilapa. Like many factions, it is believed to be allied with a local drug gang.

    Separately, police said they found the remains of four men in a wooded area on the southern outskirts of Mexico City. Those woods have been used in the past to dump bodies.

  9. #459
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    https://www.sierraleonetimes.com/new...port-elizabeth

    Two men have died in mob justice attacks in New Brighton, Port Elizabeth, within the last 24 hours, Eastern Cape police said on Tuesday.

    The first man died on Monday after residents accused him of being a robber, said Captain Andre Beetge.

    Officers rushed to Stofile Street after receiving reports of a vigilante murder.

    "On arrival, a group of persons were found standing around the burning body of Sinethemba Gwatya," he said.

    "Next to him, a burnt toy gun and rocks were found."

    Beetge said nobody at the scene was willing to say who had killed Gwatya, but allegations were made that the 23-year-old had robbed people before he was killed by a group of residents.

    "Sinethemba had head and body injuries and his body was burnt using tyres by his attackers," said Beetge.

    On Tuesday morning, officers found a group of people standing around the burning body of another man, on the corner of Mbilini and Sidindi Street.

    He was later identified as 29-year-old Mandla Charles Hashe.

    "They attempted to block the police members from approaching the deceased, but police managed to break through the crowd and secure the crime scene. Nobody at the scene was willing to say who killed him," said Beetge.

    Hashe was found with head and body injuries. Beetge said his body was burnt using tyres.

    Motherwell Cluster Commander, Major General Dawie Rabie warned: "The South African Police Service cannot allow members of the community to take the law into their own hands. Any person taking part in acts like these will be arrested and charged with murder. We simply cannot allow a community to be transformed into murderers."

    Police were investigating the murders.

  10. #460
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    https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/n...-38350162.html

    Police said the paramilitary-style assault took place at a property near the Bangor Road around 8.45pm on Thursday.

    A masked gang wearing high visibility jackets and wielding hammers carried out the attack, which left the man, aged in his 20s, hospitalised with serious head injuries.

    The vehicle suspected of being used for the attack was located in the Glen Estate area a short time later.

    A joint statement from Ards Churches Together, a collective of leaders from Anglican, Methodist, Catholic, Presbyterian, non-denominational and other backgrounds, said those responsible were not representing their community.

    The group said: "We were shocked and saddened to learn of the attack that took place on Thursday. This activity has no place in our town which is known as a warm and welcoming place.

    "We urge those who plan and perpetrate attacks like these to realise the harm they cause to their own community, including their own family, friends and neighbours, when they engage in intimidation, fear and violence."

    Extending an olive branch to those involved in criminality, the group added: "Local church leaders are willing to talk confidentially to anyone who wants to turn their lives around."

    Residents said the area where the attack took place is popular with children during the evenings.

    DUP councillor Naomi Armstrong-Cotter said it happened at Rosevale Avenue, just off the Bangor Road.

    "It's fair to say this is a paramilitary attack," she said.

    "I have two young children and it's shocking this actually happened so close to our home.

    "We take our dog out walking in a loop around Rosevale.

    "It's a family area and a lot of children would normally be about at that time of night. It's absolutely unacceptable.

    "This is a nice area and I've never seen an attack like this taking place here.

    "Our community doesn't behave in this way and I would sincerely urge those who know the men behind the masks to come forward.

    "The message needs to be sent that we won't tolerate this kind of vigilante activity."

    Police condemned the attack and appealed for information.

    The PSNI said: "This was a brutal attack on a man in a residential area. Those involved do not represent the interests of the local community and contribute nothing to it.

    "There is absolutely no justification for an attack like this in our communities, and we must all work together to bring those responsible to justice and to stop this from happening to anyone else.

    "If you were in the area of Bangor Road, Newtownards, or Glen Estate, Newtownards, or if you know anything about this incident which could assist us with our investigation, please pick up the phone and call detectives at Bangor on 101 and quote reference number 2042 of July 25, 2019."

    Information can also be provided to the independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111.

    The phone call is 100% anonymous.

  11. #461
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    https://www.huffpost.com/entry/cruel...b004b6adb3cc7d




    Earlier this month, a California man was sentenced for fatally shooting a couple in 2004 that he allegedly mistook as homeless drifters sleeping on a beach.

    In November, authorities say, anger of homeless residents in a Seattle neighborhood led a man to fatally shoot a 26-year-old homeless man whom he had accused of breaking a window at his home months earlier.

    A man holding a bicycle tire outside of a tent along a street in San Francisco on June 27, 2019.
    Then last September, four men sleeping outdoors in Santa Monica and Los Angeles were found beaten to death. A man arrested in the attacks has since been charged with those four deaths as well as the attempted murder of four others.

    Vigilante justice is not unusual, said Maria Foscarinis, founder and executive director of the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty.

    “It is prevalent, these kinds of strategies to remove homeless people from public places,” she told HuffPost, adding that people appear to be “getting increasingly creative in the cruelty in their approaches.”


    These more creative efforts are part of a broader trend of private and public entities trying to make it impossible for homeless people to exist. This comes as housing prices across the country rise faster than wages, and affordable homes become harder to find.

    “More people are feeling the squeeze on tenable housing costs and the people who are poorest become homeless,”

    America’s primary response to homelessness is still criminalization.

    Homeless people move belongings from a street near Los Angeles City Hall as crews prepared to clean the area on Monday, July 1, 2019.
    A 2015 study of Washington state found that cities with higher rates of income inequality enforced “homeless crimes” — such as loitering, obstructing sidewalks and “scavenging” — more frequently.

    “As the evidence of inequality starts to become clear in the form of visible poverty, neighborhoods react by increasing complaints and enforcing more punitive laws to get rid of the evidence,” said the study’s editor Sara Rankin, director of the Homeless Rights Advocacy Project at Seattle University School of Law.

    The strategy of criminalizing homelessness is explicitly designed to hide poverty, not to alleviate it, she said.

    According to a National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty survey, 120 of America’s 187 largest cities outlaw “vagrancy,” a nebulous term that invites targeted harassment of homeless people. Ninety-nine other cities prohibit sitting in public. Twenty-two have made it illegal for residents to share food with homeless people.

    Hostile Architecture is designed intentionally to make it harder for someone to sit or sleep in a location. If your response to a homeless crisis in your city is to make life harder for the most vulnerable, you’re garbage. Throw yourself into the sea.


    Cities are also dedicating an increasing portion of their resources to enforcing those laws. In Portland, 50% of the city’s arrests are now of homeless people. In Los Angeles, police issued more than 14,000 citations to residents with “transient” addresses in 2016, a 31% increase in just five years. Other cities have started cracking down on service providers themselves, requiring soup kitchen volunteers to get food handling certificates and barring charities from entering parks to hand out sandwiches.

    There Aren’t Enough Places For Them To Go
    Many of the cities making it more difficult for homeless people to survive outside aren’t attempting to give them anywhere else to go.

    Boulder, Colorado, has around 440 homeless people and only 280 shelter beds. Nonetheless, police handed out 1,767 camping citations last year. Seattle, where homeless people outnumber shelter beds roughly two to one, performed 527 homeless sweeps in 2018 alone, invading encampments, confiscating belongings and shooing residents onto the streets with nothing but their clothes.

    Cots are arranged in a room at a shelter and soup kitchen run by the Missionaries of Charity, a group founded by Mother Teres

    Cots are arranged in a room at a shelter and soup kitchen run by the Missionaries of Charity, a group founded by Mother Teresa, on June 04, 2019, in Gallup, New Mexico. New Mexico is one of the poorest states in the United States, with a sluggish economy, a growing homeless problem and a surge in drug use.
    During one such sweep in December 2016, police in Denver confiscated people’s blankets in the frigid night, claiming they were “evidence” of violations of the city’s camping ban.

    “These are just outrageous examples of needless cruel treatment,” Foscarinis said of the response by public officials, which she warned sets a bad example. “That sends a message to private citizens, private individuals, that this is OK, that homeless people are less than human, that treating them inhumanely is OK.”

    Courts have consistently struck down the ordinances cities are using to perform tent sweeps and issue homeless citations. In September, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declared that Boise’s no-camping law amounted to cruel and unusual punishment because the city had four times more homeless people than shelter beds.

    This ruling essentially declared that all areas within the 9th Circuit, which includes California, Washington and Arizona, are not allowed to arrest or punish people for sleeping on public property unless they are provided adequate and relatively accessible indoor accommodations. Boise has said it will appeal the court’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. The court is not expected to make a decision on if it will hear the case until the fall.

    A couple sleeps on a street in downtown Portland, Oregon, in 2017. An analysis found that one in every two arrests made by the Portland Police Bureau in 2017 was of a homeless person.
    Anti-panhandling laws have also been struck down numerous times on free-speech grounds, and laws prohibiting people from sleeping in their own cars have been thrown out as discriminatory.

    Politicians typically cast encampment sweeps and mass arrests as humanitarian interventions, a final, merciful push for “shelter resistant” homeless people to make the leap into housing, employment and rehab. In reality, however, these campaigns are rarely paired with meaningful assistance, Rankin said.

    While most of the citations resulting from these legal crackdowns are low-level misdemeanors like trespassing or loitering, they are often the first step in a never-ending cascade of unpaid fines, unattended court appearances and unreceived warrants.


    Policing now makes up 85% of Salt Lake City’s homeless services budget. Seattle, which has outsourced its homeless sweeps to a contractor called Cascadia Cleaning and Removal, spent more than $10 million on relocating people who live in unauthorized encampments in 2017 alone.

    Operation Rio Grande, Utah’s 2017 mass homeless arrest campaign, cost an estimated $67 million — nearly five times what Salt Lake City spends on shelters and soup kitchens each year. Operation Rio Grande has so far resulted in 5,000 arrests and just 279 offers of housing and 132 new admissions to drug treatment.

    Everett Police officers arrest a man with an outstanding warrant near the Smith Ave. Bridge in Everett, Washington, which is a constant gathering place for homeless people battling addiction and mental illness. The hardcore homeless represent a major financial burden on Everett, putting pressure on jail, emergency room and other services.
    “Law enforcement crackdowns are typically a response to the visibility of homelessness, not the suffering of the people experiencing it,” Margot Kushel, the director of the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center for Vulnerable Populations, told HuffPost.

    In recent years, due to such visibility, city residents across the country have become increasingly radicalized against the homeless population.

    Some Of The Proposed Solutions
    Instead of taking matters into their own hands, Foscarinis said, disgruntled members of the public should turn to political engagement.

    “They should pressure their leaders in government at the local level but state and federal levels as well to commit to actually solving the problem,” she said. “Solutions to homelessness exist.” Two such solutions, she said, are providing housing to get people off the streets and, in certain cases, providing them with social services.

    Advocates for the homeless are calling for non-punitive alternative solutions, particularly permanent housing, which numerous studies have found is the most cost-effective means of addressing chronic homelessness.

    The biggest hindrance to solving homelessness is the belief that providing housing is giving someone something they don’t deserve.
    Sara Rankin, director of the Homeless Rights Advocacy Project at Seattle University School of Law
    In March, California Rep. Maxine Waters (D) introduced the Ending Homelessness Act of 2019, a bill that would appropriate $13.27 billion in emergency relief funding. Over five years, the money would fund several critical federal housing programs and initiatives for the homeless, including the creation of 410,000 new units of housing for people experiencing homelessness.

    “In the richest country in the world, it is simply unacceptable that we have people living in the streets,” she said in a release. “Today, there are over a half million people experiencing homelessness nationwide. Nearly 160,000 of them are children and nearly 38,000 are veterans who we have failed to support after their service to our nation.”

    Rankin acknowledged that such proposed solutions can be hard for opponents to swallow, however.

    “The biggest hindrance to solving homelessness is the belief that providing housing is giving someone something they don’t deserve,” she said.

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    https://www.heraldlive.co.za/news/20...cks-this-week/


    Three people have been killed in separate mob justice related incidents in the Kwazakhele area since Monday.

    All the killings happened within a 1km radius and involve the men being stoned and torched.

    In the latest incident, Sipho Ngcoza, 26, was stoned and torched at about 1am Thursday.

    Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said police received a call about a mob justice incident taking place in Nkata Street, Kwazakhele.

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    “Police responded to the call and when they arrived on the scene they found the deceased lying in the street.

    "About 70 people were standing around, however, everyone claimed to not know what happened,” he said.

    “There were several rocks lying close to the body and he had two tyres around his body.”

    Beetge said that no one could provide details on why he was attacked.

    “Residents claim to not know what happened.”

    This comes after Mandla Charles Hashe, 29, was killed by a group at the corners of Mbilini Street and Sidindi Street on Tuesday morning.

    Beetge said that the incident happened at about 10am.

    "The residents attempted to block the police members from approaching the deceased, but police managed to break through the crowd and secure the crime scene. Nobody at the scene was willing to say who killed him,” he said.

    This comes after Sinethemba Gwatya, 23, was stoned and torched in Stofile Street, Kwazakhele at around midday on Monday.

    “The victim was found with head and body injuries and his body was burnt using tyres by his attackers,” Beetge said.

    Asked if the incidents were linked, Beetge said that it was unclear.

    “At this stage it is being investigated. It appears that there is some link as the proximity in which the attacks occurred are within a kilometre. In some of the cases there are allegations that they were criminals operating in the area,” he said.

    “There is no evidence at this stage to substantiate these claims.”

    Beetge highlighted the murder of Mava Fundakubi, 52, in January who was wrongly accused of raping a seven-year-old girl before being viciously beaten to death.

    A medical examination and tests revealed that the child had not been raped and interviews with her had also provided no evidence of any molestation, police said.

    Fundakubi was innocent and the girl’s father was arrested for the murder amid allegations that he spearheaded the attack which killed him.

    “The January killing of an innocent man is testament that residents need to let the police do their job. We cannot allow the law to be taken into the hands of residents,” Beetge said.

    Motherwell Cluster Commander Major General Dawie Rabie said that a team of detectives had been tasked to look into the cases.

    “We will not tolerate this and call for calm within the communities. Residents must realise that they are committing a crime and will be jailed for killing someone,” he stressed.

    Three cases of murder are under investigation by Kwazakhele detectives.

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    https://dailypost.ng/2019/08/01/jung...jures-another/

    Two armed robbery suspects, specialized in using tricycle (Keke Napep) to rob unsuspecting passengers, were killed with one other severely injured after they were seriously beating by an angry mob following a failed robbery attempt.

    The victims were: Nsikan Phillip, 23 years from Akwa Ibom State, Lucky Iniokpo Lucky, 21 years and 18 years, Perekebina both from Toru-Ebeni community in Sagbama Local government Area, of Bayelsa state.

    DAILY POST, learnt that the incident, which occurred at Dimrose street, in Biogbolo community, of Yenagoa LGA, at about 11pm, Wednesday night, threw the entire street into excitement.

    The suspects, it was also gathered, were caught by local vigilantes, who voluntarily keep watch on different streets due to the incessant spate of robbery attacks in the state.

    An eyewitness, name withheld, said, “We had earlier saw the tricycle parade the area when I was going to the Dimrose junction to buy something from the store, though I didn’t suspect them but because of the way Bayelsa is we are always on red alert.

    “I think the vigilante group were alerted and despite their guns and other weapons they were able to grab them, and everyone came out to mob them. I believe two died instantly by the beating and brutality from angry residents but even the one that appears alive may not survive death.”

    He added that the security situation in the state was so alarming that residents even protect themselves more than they could be protected by security agents.

    “The people of the state resorted to jungle Justice in the past and we recorded great result because there was a wave in crime rate but for some time again I think they are back. We don’t sleep with our eyes closed, there’s hardly no day you don’t hear of robbery incident.

    “It appears the state government has left us to our fate, and its only God that protects, so we are always careful and vigilant in Yenagoa,” the eyewitness told our correspondent.

    When contacted, the state command Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Asimin Butswat, said he was not in town at the moment but will reach the command and revert on the incident before the end of the day.

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    https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co....ears-1-9888387

    TWO Leeds brothers who launched a machete and baton vigilante attack on a man they believed had assaulted their sister have been jailed for a total of 23-and-a-half-years.

    Victim Morgan Robertson suffered two life-threatening slash wounds to his back and had to have a finger amputated.

    One wound on his back was so large that a paramedic called to the incident said it was one of the worst stab injuries he'd seen and was big enough to put his fist through.
    A Leeds Crown Court judge told brothers Dean and Matthew Smith: "This court cannot and will not allow anyone to take the law into their own hands the way you two did that morning."

    The Smith brothers and a third unidentified man attacked Mr Robertson at a flat in Moortown, just after 11am on December 2 2018.

    Dean Smith, 33, was armed with a machete and Matthew Smith, 30, had a baton or cosh.

    Prosecutor Fiona Clancy said Mr Robertson's T shirt was heavily bloodstained when he ran in to the street, where the attack continued in broad daylight.

    Mr Robertson went to a number of houses asking for help and collapsed before a member of the public called an ambulance.

    Matthew Harding, mitigating for Matthew Smith, said there had been an allegation of domestic abuse, adding: "It was the phone call from a distressed sister that led to him finding himself in the position he does.

    "It was a moment of madness that took over at that stage. He felt a sense of immediate regret."

    Michael Collins, for Dean Smith, said: "It came about because of what I submit were peculiar circumstances.
    'Lack of information' from West Yorkshire...







    "It so happens that the man who had assaulted Dean Smith the previous evening went on later to assault Dean Smith's sister."

    Matthew Smith, of Ingleton Drive, east Leeds, admitted wounding with intent and possessing an offensive weapon.

    Dean Smith, of Stonegate Farm Close, north Leeds, denied wounding with intent and possessing an offensive weapon.

    A Leeds Crown Court jury convicted Dean Smith of both charges after a trial.

    Recorder Andrew Haslam QC jailed Dean Smith for 13-and-a-half-years and handed Matthew Smith a 10-year prison sentence.

    Recorder Haslam said: "The paramedic observed two significant slash wounds to his back, one which was so big he could have put his fist through.



    "He described it as one of the worst stab injuries he'd seen during seven-years service. They were, in his view, life-threatening and life-changing injuries.

    "The victim could have died if the blade had cut him deeper. One of his fingers had been amputated."

    Recorder Haslam added: "This court cannot and will not allow anyone to take the law into their own hands the way you two did that morning."

    Matthew Smith has 13 previous convictions for 22 offences, including conspiracy to burgle, assaullt and affray.

    Dean Smith has nine previous convictions for 13 offences including unlawful wounding, conspiracy to burgle and racially aggravated harassment.

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    Quote Originally Posted by KambingSociety View Post
    There's an old thread for this guy


    http://mydeathspace.com/vb/showthrea...dmore-Missouri

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    https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/ne...9-court-hears/

    A SO-CALLED paedophile hunter accused of using excessive force to apprehend a child sex offender told police he was 'not sorry' afterwards, a court heard.

    Shane Brannigan said he had been sexually abused as a child and had the 'right' to exact revenge on paedophiles.

    The 41-year-old is alleged to have carried out a Wild West-style citizen's arrest of Bournemouth man Andrew Vaughan who he had caught in a sting operation.

    Vaughan, 48, sent lewd videos of himself to what he thought was an underage girl when it fact it was Brannigan's organisation.


    Although Vaughan was later convicted of child sex offences, Brannigan was accused of going over the top when confronting him.

    The 'vigilante' is said to have put Vaughan in a headlock and punched him in the ribs and head while he held him in his car for 30 minutes until the police arrived.

    Brannigan was arrested and charged with false imprisonment and has gone on trial at Bournemouth Crown Court.

    The jury heard extracts from Brannigan's police interview.

    He was asked by investigating officer David Wilkins what right he had to arrest Vaughan.

    Brannigan, who has waived his right to anonymity, said: "I was raped...as a young child and you're asking me what right I have?

    "The scars will stay with me until the day I am in a hole. So no I am not sorry."

    He added that Vaughan had 'committed a crime' and said he did not want to let him out of the car 'in case he went into his house and hid evidence'.

    Mr Wilkins also asked why he did not call the police, to which Brannigan replied he had dialled 999 but the operator had instructed him not to call back.

    He said: "I do not value authority yet alone respect it.

    "I am anti-authoritarian, I hate the police, I hate the government and I hate the system in general.

    "My plan is to bring the f****** lot down."

    The court has heard how Brannigan travelled from his home in Pontefract, West Yorks, to Bournemouth, on October 25, 2017, after catching Vaughan in an online sting operation.


    He and a colleague waited for Vaughan to arrive home from work before forcing their way into his car to detain him.

    The convicted sex offender has told the jury he feared for his life and was relieved when the police turned up to arrest him.

    Robert Bryan, prosecuting, told the court the CPS had to bring charges of false imprisonment against "vigilante" Brannigan.

    He said: "People can't put themselves above the law and become vigilantes. We have police officers for a reason - this is not the Wild West.

    "This is still the case no matter how unpalatable the offence is.

    "Nobody is going to shy away from what Mr Vaughan was convicted of but we cannot condone people acting in the way Mr Brannigan acted. This is why the Crown has brought this case against him."

    Brannigan denies false imprisonment and the trial continues.

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    https://metro.co.uk/2019/07/30/paedo...girl-10487009/

    Pardon Shane Brannigan

    A self-styled paedophile hunter is alleged to have used excessive force when he made a citizen’s arrest. Shane Brannigan, 41, is on trial for holding Andrew Vaughan against his will after tracking him down when he sent lewd videos of himself to someone who he thought was an underage girl. The person he was communicating with was actually Brannigan. Brannigan allegedly put Vaughan, 49, in a headlock after hiding outside is home with a colleague in Bournemouth on October 25, 2017. He then punched him in the ribs and head and refused to let him go until the police arrived 30 minutes later, the court heard. Vaughan, who was convicted and jailed for sexual communication with an underage child, told jurors he feared for his life and was relieved when the police turned up to arrest him. The arrest was caught on camera by Brannigan and the footage was shown to the jury. During the recording Vaughan can be heard screaming for help as well as banging his head against the steering wheel, sounding the horn. Bournemouth Crown Court (Picture: Google Maps) Giving evidence from behind a screen, Vaughan told the jury: ‘The two men got into my car and got hold of me. ‘They would not let go. I just wanted to go into my house. ‘Mr Brannigan had me in a headlock and I panicked. ‘I was fearing for my life and was actually relieved when the police arrived because that made them stop.’ Mark Florida-Jones, defending, challenged Vaughan on his claim his ribs had been bruised by Brannigan. He said a police report recorded ‘no bruising or obvious sign of rib pain’. Vaughan also admitted that he had bitten Brannigan and headbutted him as he attempted to escape the car. Mr Florida-Jones claimed the defendant had only been restraining Vaughan to prevent him getting out of the car. He said: ‘They had to restrain you to stop you leaving the car but at no point did Mr Brannigan punch you. ‘To be blunt, I would put it to you that you are lying. ‘You wanted Mr Brannigan to punch you so when the police arrived you could be treated as a victim. ‘He admitted that he wanted to hit you but he did not.’ Vaughan replied: ‘No that is not the case.’ Robert Bryan, prosecuting, added despite the ‘unpalatable’ nature of the offence committed by Vaughan, the CPS had to bring charges of false imprisonment against Brannigan. Brannigan, from West Yorkshire, denies the charge of false imprisonment and the trial continues.


    Read more: https://metro.co.uk/2019/07/30/paedo...9/?ito=cbshare

    Twitter: https://twitter.com/MetroUK | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MetroUK/

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    https://www.groundup.org.za/article/...ort-elizabeth/

    There has been a spike in vigilante killings in Port Elizabeth, police have said.

    Motherwell police cluster spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said: “We are not allowed to give statistics about crime. However, we have seen an increase in mob justice killings in the past few weeks, but we don’t know the reason.”

    GroundUp knows of four cases reported to police between 29 July and 6 August.

    In press releases, Beetge said on 29 July, Sinethemba Gwatya, 23, was beaten and burned with a tyre; on 30 July, Mandla Hashe, 29, was killed by a mob. Both murders happened in New Brighton.

    A 30-year-old man was murdered by a mob in Zwide. His naked body was found in Sakhuba Street, on Wednesday morning, with his hands and feet bound with wire and a rope around his neck. He had multiple injuries due to a severe assault. His body was partially burnt. His identity is unknown.

    On Tuesday, Groundup visited yet another scene of mob justice, this time in Ramaphosa. A man had been burnt to death in a stormwater drain. He hands were tied. Beetge said police did not know the name of the victim or why he was killed.

    “We are tired of these criminals,” said a young woman. “They force open our doors and rape women and children. Criminals are killing innocent people … We don’t have confidence with police anymore because they have failed us. They are friends with criminals.”

    Beetge said police have been blocked by angry residents from attending to the scenes of vigilante killings. He also said investigating cases was difficult, because “people don’t want to talk or to be involved. They just keep quiet”.

    Motherwell Community Policing Forum chairperson Nomawethu Jama said police are understaffed and don’t have enough vehicles. “This is at the core of people’s anger. Residents view this as incompetence, yet police have logistical reasons.”

    “There are a lot of unsolved cases involving rape, murder and robberies where no suspects have been arrested. People know who these criminals are but they don’t trust the police. If they hand over the names of suspects, they think they will be betrayed by police. This is why they have decided to take the law into their own hands and kill the suspects. We discourage that.”

    According to a report, State of Urban Safety in South Africa Report, from the Urban Safety Reference Group, Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality has the second highest murder rate after Cape Town at 54 murders per 100,000 people per year.

    Beetge said: “We have Community Policing Forums and sector managers who regularly go out to speak to communities. We also visit schools to influence youth to change their future. “

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    https://www.theguardian.com/society/...igilante-label

    There has been an ‘explosion’ in cases unearthed by anti-online grooming groups such as Wolf Pack


    Oliver Braid, one of the founders of the Scottish Wolf Pack group. Photograph: Katherine Anne Rose/The Observer
    CiCi says it can feel as though she is running two lives: “I’ve got my Wolf Pack life online, and then I’m also a normal mum that does the school run, shops at Asda, typical mum duties.”

    CiCi is the moniker used by this 30-something mother of three, who lives near Glasgow and is a key member of Wolf Pack Hunters, the most active anti-online grooming group in Scotland.

    Self-styled “paedophile hunting” groups such as Wolf Pack have occupied an ambivalent territory between law enforcement and vigilantism for nearly a decade across the UK.


    But in Scotland over the last 18 months, lawyers have described an “explosion” in cases going through the courts, based on evidence gathered by these groups when an adult decoy, pretending to be a child, engages with an alleged abuser online. Wolf Pack alone is conducting an average of four stings a month across the country, as experts point to a rise in activity resulting in hundreds of prosecutions.

    Simultaneously, questions are again being raised about the methods that online child abuse activist groups (OCAAGs) employ. In June, one Dundee sheriff described the use of such evidence as “an affront to the justice system”. But detail from the groups themselves about their methods and motivations has remained scant.

    Now, through in-depth interviews, freedom of information requests and data analysis, the Guardian has pieced together a comprehensive portrait of their approach in Scotland and how it sits alongside law enforcement.

    According to the Guardian’s investigation, these groups are highly organised, making serious attempts to gather the most usable evidence for police and courts, and are often self-taught in legal procedure. They provide more general advice on internet safety and support around sexual abuse to their thousands of online followers. And they claim to have positive individual relationships with local police.

    The National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) estimates that police across the UK deal with about 100 incidents every week, related to 190 OCAAGs, but cautions that some groups have only ever been involved in one incident while others are differently named groups started by the same individuals. The nature of their online presence makes it hard to pin down their locations, but the Guardian is aware of at least 10 OCAAGs operating in Scotland, while others work cross-border. Many refuse to speak to the media.


    According to data shared by Glasgow-based Wolf Pack Hunters, it has conducted more than 80 sting operations from mid-October 2017 to the end of March 2019, all of which resulted in arrest and charge. So far, 25 have been independently verified as resulting in either a guilty plea or a guilty verdict.

    Another active group, Child Protectors Scotland, has conducted 54 stings since the beginning of November 2017, resulting in seven convictions and many other cases awaiting a court appearance. Keeping Kids Safe, which now operates from England but was originally set up in Scotland in mid-2017, has undertaken 12 stings, 10 of which resulted in convictions, with two still going through the courts.

    Members of the the Wolf Pack Hunters UK group seen in an image taken from Facebook. Photograph: Facebook.com/WolfPackHunting
    Analysis found sentences ranged from community payback orders to up to three years in prison, with all who were convicted being placed on the sex offenders’ register for varying lengths of time.

    The activities of these hunters have attracted plenty of criticism since they first came to prominence earlier this decade, with reports of mistaken identity, blackmail, mob violence and suicides linked to online exposure. But this growing army of online activists also attract significant numbers of supporters – footage of the groups’ confrontations with alleged paedophiles, often streamed live on Facebook, are viewed and liked by millions – who believe they are doing a job the authorities are unwilling or insufficiently resourced to do properly.

    “We embrace the vigilante label,” says Oliver Braid, one of the founders of the Scottish Wolf Pack group. “The response from the public has been overwhelmingly positive, whether that’s at stings or the thousands of messages we get online. People don’t feel the police take this seriously enough. So it’s about keeping children safe but it’s also about building a sense of community.”

    Stuart Allardyce, the director of the child abuse prevention campaign Stop It Now! Scotland, confirms the increase in hunting activity north of the border, but warns: “While many online activist groups are genuinely trying to help, they often fail to consider the risk of harm to their target, as well as their family and friends. Their work can also be counterproductive – the evidence they supply is often not high enough quality to secure a conviction.”



    The police take a firm official line on OCAAGs – the NPCC is clear that “we do not endorse these groups and will not work with them”, while Police Scotland says: “It’s understandable that people want to protect children from harm but we would ask them not to take the law into their own hands.” According to the force, nearly 1,600 crimes where an individual communicated with a child for sexual purposes were recorded between April 2018 and February 2019. Police sources also express frustration that these incidents pull resources from high-harm cases to low-grade grooming offences that might not even make it to court.

    But the hunting groups say individual police officers are more supportive of their activities. Sophie (not her real name) runs the Child Protectors Scotland team, which has about 30 members, ranging in age from early 20s to 60s. “Certain police forces will work with us, but they’d never admit it. For example, we might call and say we’re planning a sting at a certain time, and they’ll ask us to delay it because they’re busy. I’ve had police officers shake me by the hand. They know we’re not leaving any time soon.”

    Speaking to a number of Scottish OCAAGs, what is immediately striking is the degree of organisation involved. Wolf Pack decoys, for example, are given a lengthy handbook that includes suggested childlike responses and tips on evidence gathering. They are also instructed never to initiate sexual conversation or arrangements to meet in person.

    Decoys are trained to talk about school, homework and parents, and to explain their inexperience if a person tries to introduce sexual content to the exchange. They are also taught to move the chat to WhatsApp as quickly as possible so the conversation can be easily retrieved and is encrypted, reducing the chances of mistaken identity.

    As CiCi explains: “Some will say immediately: “Oh, you’re too young,’ and sometimes report you; others continue to talk. I’m always reminding them of my age. When it comes into the sexual chat, I say: ‘I don’t know anything about that,’ and again the ball is in their court. Some will go right into it, by which I mean graphic details, pictures, videos, links to porn sites, things that kids should not be seeing.”

    At a face-to-face meeting, the alleged offender will be met by members of the OCAAG, who will immediately make a citizen’s arrest and call the police, livestreaming the incident to the Wolf Pack Hunters UK Facebook page while waiting for the police to attend.

    It is this practice of filmed confrontation, reminiscent of the US TV show To Catch a Predator, which originally ran from 2004 to 2008, that is most controversial. Braid insists the Wolf Pack team “will protect both the hunter and the predator” and that stings are timed to last for no longer than 15 minutes, to ensure a potentially aggressive crowd does not gather.


    But last summer, on a housing estate in the West Lothian town of Armadale, a man who was already a registered sex offender was taken into protective custody for his own safety after an angry mob gathered around his house and a car was set on fire.

    Braid says the group visited the man’s house because they were concerned that he was living with children of a similar age to the Wolf Pack decoy he was talking to, and insists the location was not posted online in advance. He adds that “despite the events being portrayed negatively in the media, we have had overwhelming support from the people of Armadale”. The man who was hounded out of his home later pleaded guilty to a grooming charge.

    Interviews with those involved in OCAAGs reveal a strong belief that sexual abuse of children, particularly online grooming, is not being taken seriously enough by the authorities. But their motivation also stems from a deeper personal motivation. “Almost everybody in the group has direct personal experience of abuse,” one member said.

    Group members also insist that stings are only the most visible part of their activities, which include internet safety advice to worried parents, support to individuals disclosing historical abuse for the first time, and a gathering place for people who feel their concerns about children’s safety are not being heard elsewhere.

    CiCi, who has acted as a decoy on about 20 stings, is hopeful that her work is starting to alert those in authority to what she sees as an epidemic of online grooming. “Wolf Pack has opened my eyes to how I can prevent this happening to my kids and help other people. I definitely feel I’m making a difference. Since we’ve started pointing this out to people, the police, the courts, the right people are hearing it. They know there’s an epidemic. Do we want to live in a country that just lets this happen?”

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    This thread gets a ridiculous number of hits now.




    Greetings Vigilante Porn Addicts, welcome to your daily fix




    (... unless it's just Kambing reading it over & over & over & over & over - in which case, Hi Kambing )
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    https://www.idahostatejournal.com/ne...a23fc9c10.html

    30 days sentencing




    A Logan, Utah, teen who fatally shoved an elderly former Southeast Idaho man to the ground in April because he believed his sister had been sexually assaulted by him was recently ordered to serve 30 days in juvenile detention.

    The victim, 62-year-old Michael Fife, struck his head and later died of his injuries, and the teen was charged with homicide by assault, a third-degree felony.

    “The judge gave him the maximum that she could, given his lack of criminal history, and that was 30 days,” defense attorney Dave Perry said.

    During his disposition hearing, the youth said the entire incident is “destroying him on the inside.”

    He read a letter of apology to Fife’s family, in which he let them know he didn’t take Fife’s death lightly.

    “This has taken a toll over me and put me in a numb feeling where I can’t do anything but think about what has happened,” he said. “I have been seeing that what I chose to do wasn’t the best option to approach the situation, and now I have to live with the consequences of what I have done.”

    In a victim impact statement, Fife’s son said his father was a man with “a big heart and an angry soul,” and his death leaves a significant void in the family.

    “I don’t see how the damage can be repaired,” he reportedly wrote in the statement.

    Fife was born in Gallup, New Mexico, was abandoned as an infant and lived in an orphanage for several years. Then he was adopted by a couple in St. Charles, Idaho, which is about 105 miles south of Pocatello near Bear Lake and the borders of Wyoming and Utah. He was raised there.

    According to records filed in 1st District Court, the 17-year-old went looking for Fife on April 23 after receiving a call from his sister, who allegedly said Fife touched her inappropriately while she was a passenger on a Cache Valley Transit District bus.

    Police say they reviewed video footage both from the bus and from the Logan High School area where the incident occurred.

    Based on those videos, they were able to determine that the allegations against Fife were false.

    They were also able to see the girl’s brother get out of a vehicle, run at Fife and push him to the ground before running off.

    Fife was initially transported to Logan Regional Hospital for evaluation, where medical professionals found he had a fractured skull with bleeding and swelling in his brain, reportedly caused by the assault.

    Fife was later transferred to McKay Dee Hospital in Ogden and died April 27.

    According to Perry, Fife’s blood alcohol content at the time of the incident was .24, and medical professionals reportedly told him that Fife might not have died if not for the effects of chronic alcoholism on the body.

    The female juvenile also faced consequences for the events leading up to Fife’s death. However due to her age and the lower level of offense, that information is not public information.

  22. #472
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    Yeah. It's fucked.

    You'd hope he'd learn sonething from this, but you've posted plenty of cases like this & you haven't.

  23. #473
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    Quote Originally Posted by blighted star View Post
    This thread gets a ridiculous number of hits now.




    Greetings Vigilante Porn Addicts, welcome to your daily fix




    (... unless it's just Kambing reading it over & over & over & over & over - in which case, Hi Kambing )


    https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/N...-cape-20190808

    Two men estimated to be around 30 years old were murdered by groups of people on Tuesday and Wednesday in separate vigilante attacks in the Eastern Cape.

    Provincial police spokesperson Captain Andr? Beetge said on Wednesday morning at about 04:50 police and ambulance services were alerted to a partially naked man lying in Sakhuba Street, Zwide after he was attacked by a group of people.

    "His hands and feet were bound in wire and there was a rope around his neck. He had multiple injuries owing to being severely assaulted with unknown objects or weapons. His body was partially burnt and he was wearing blue pants and a green shirt," Beetge said.

    This followed an unrelated incident on Tuesday where the burnt body of another was found in a stormwater channel behind Mboniselo Primary School in Mandela Village, Ikamvelihle at about 09:30.

    "The victim's hands were bound behind his back and his body covered in injuries from a severe assault by a group of unknown suspects. His body was also burnt using flammable objects. Both victims' identities remain unknown."

    Read: Spike in vigilante killings in Port Elizabeth - says the police

    Mob justice suspects arrested

    In the meantime, a crack police detective team dealing with vigilante attack murders arrested five suspects on Tuesday night in Kwazakele. They have been linked to the murder of 23-year-old Sinethemba Gwatya on July 29. He was murdered by a group of suspects after they severely assaulted him and then set his body alight using tyres.

    The five suspects, which include four men aged between 32 and 47 years old and a 37-year-old woman, were detained at New Brighton police station.

    A group of community members gathered at the gates of the police station on Thursday morning demanding their release, but after Public Order Police intervention, the group dispersed again by noon. The suspects will be appearing before the New Brighton Magistrate's Court on Thursday to face charges of murder.

    The Motherwell cluster commander, Major General Dawie Rabie, applauded the arrests and repeated the warning that "The SAPS cannot allow communities to take the law into their own hands by becoming a community of killers and killing persons in the streets. Any person taking part in such activities will be arrested and charged with murder."

    Any person that can assist police in these murder cases can contact Detective Lieutenant Colonel Marlize Dippenaar at 082 457 2507.

  24. #474
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    https://taskandpurpose.com/feds-are-...h-texas-border

    DALLAS, Tex. -- A North Texas militia member and convicted felon who led armed patrols of the Texas-Mexico border has gone into hiding after being released from prison on federal weapons charges.


    Officials warn that Kevin Lyndel Massey's recent vows to wage war against the federal government make him a dangerous threat.

    U.S. Marshals are searching for Massey, 53, who lived most recently in Quinlan, less than an hour east of Dallas. Federal authorities say Massey, who espouses anti-government rhetoric, is known for his love of heavy weaponry as well as an "alarming rage."

    This May, about 10 months after he was released on probation, Massey became a fugitive, and a warrant was issued for his arrest, court records say. His probation officer said in court records that Massey tested positive for illegal drugs and failed to report to him. At the time, Massey's feelings about his situation were appearing on Facebook.

    "The feds forced me to take this battle, it wasn't by choice."

    "The tyrants will soon feel what we the people feel."

    "I am now a sought after man, who is going to stand up and NEVER allow them to kidnap me again."

    Massey calls himself a patriot, but the FBI considers him a domestic terrorist with "violent tendencies," according to court records.

    He was found with 20 homemade explosive devices and other weapons a few years ago and is considered armed and dangerous, officials say. His prison writings, archived online by a supporter, as well as his Facebook posts show that he fervently embraces right-wing extremist movements, all of which deny the legitimacy of the U.S. government and any laws limiting gun ownership.





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    "Defendant Massey is a man who calls upon God to end the lives of the innocent to gratify his anger," Assistant U.S. Attorney William Hagen wrote in 2015 in his unsuccessful attempt to seek a tougher prison term for Massey. "Defendant has called upon those who may share his misguided and misinformed views to take up arms in resistance against civilized laws enacted to protect the public."


    A wanted poster for Kevin Massey(U.S. Mashalls Service)

    Recent domestic attacks, including Saturday's mass shooting in El Paso, have involved young men with white supremacist views. Experts on extremism in the U.S. say militias are less lethal than white supremacist terrorists. But over the past 25 years, anti-government groups and white supremacists have been responsible for roughly the same number of terror plots and attacks, said Mark Pitcavage, senior research fellow with the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism.

    While militias have not been as active and vocal under President Donald Trump, the current immigration crisis has invigorated them, he said. Massey, who has been on the ADL's radar since his 2014 arrest, symbolizes that trend, Pitcavage said.

    "This is clearly a dangerous person we're talking about," he said.

    Massey's former attorney, who is now a judge, declined to comment.

    While the Marshals continue to look for Massey, they charged an associate of his less than two weeks ago for allowing Massey to live on his property. James Russell Smith, who lives in Lone Oak, east of Dallas, is charged with conspiracy to conceal a person from arrest. A federal complaint said Smith, who runs a tattoo parlor, also allowed Massey to store his property, including firearms, on his land.




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    Massey, an electrician and self-described "commander" of the Rusty's Rangers militia, was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison in 2016 for possession of a firearm by a felon, according to court records. Prosecutors say Massey, dressed in military fatigues, conducted armed patrols with others on the South Texas border in 2014 to search for immigrants attempting to cross into the U.S. In Facebook posts, Massey described detaining immigrants at gunpoint and binding their wrists with zip ties.

    He vowed to remain at the border until regulators "sealed the border or there's some sort of civil war," federal authorities said.

    When ATF agents raided his Brownsville hotel room in 2014 and searched his truck, they found a cache of weapons and ammonium nitrate, an explosive chemical used in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, court records show. South Texas prosecutors say Massey has expressed support for Timothy McVeigh, whose deadly attack on that city's federal building killed more than 160 people and injured over 680 others.

    Troops See White Nationalism As Bigger Threat To US Than Afghanistan And Iraq
    Militias emerged in the 1990s, partly as a response to federal gun control laws, according to the ADL. Similarly, the "patriot movement" describes several extremist groups in the U.S. who advance anti-government conspiracy theories.


    Massey also has referred to himself as a "three percenter," which the ADL calls a wing of the militia movement who falsely believe only 3% of colonists fought against the British during the Revolutionary War. They see themselves as modern revolutionaries, "fighting against a tyrannical U.S. government," the ADL says.

    Massey also has claimed in court documents to be a "sovereign man" who is not a U.S. citizen and not under U.S. jurisdiction. A Facebook page created for him called Massey a "patriot who served on the Texas border repelling foreign invaders."

    Massey's troubles with the law began when he was 19, when he was convicted of separate weapons charges for carrying a revolver, two baseball bats spiked with nails, and a table leg with attached chain, prosecutors said.

    The 1980s also saw two home burglary convictions for him in Dallas County, for which he was sentenced to five years in state prison, court records show.

    Massey, known as "KC," enlisted in the Army but was discharged after just 59 days, according to prosecutors. He joined the Cossacks motorcycle club, which the FBI considers a criminal organization, and served as a sergeant-at-arms, court records show.

    Massey and his wife, from whom he's now divorced, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2004. He said in filings that he'd worked as a web developer and listed among his possessions a 1988 Harley Davidson and a pistol.

    He would gain infamy in 2014 for his activities in Brownsville as a member of a border vigilante group called Rusty's Rangers. The militia members, displeased with U.S. border enforcement, say they took matters into their own hands after obtaining permission to access private property. Their makeshift "Camp Lonestar" on rural land served as a "staging area for their patrols," according to a federal search warrant application.

    Massey routinely videotaped his border activities and posted them on Facebook, court records say. He would later say on Facebook that he had the power of citizen's arrest.

    ———

    ?2019 The Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

  25. #475
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    https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-new...-girl-18826456

    A paedophile who blindfolded and raped a four-year-old girl was beaten by his cell mate in an apparent revenge attack.

    Jonathan Byram, 50, was awaiting sentence for the horrific crime when he was subjected to the beating.

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    A mug shot taken shortly afterwards shows Byram with marks all over his face, a swollen left eye and significant damage to the eyeball itself.

    Appearing at Leeds Crown Court last week Byram was jailed for 11 years.

    His lawyer, Ketherine Robinson, said: "He is struggling in prison. He has been assaulted by his cell mate.

    "Others might think that is what he rightly deserves and he accepts that."

    The sentencing was briefly disrupted after an outburst from a man in the public gallery as the details of the offence were outlined in court.

    Security staff were called into court after the man shouted: "You better give him life or else I will kill him."

    Rupert Doswell, prosecuting, told the court how the 50-year-old preyed upon his victim.

    Police were contacted when she told a relative about what had happened.

    The girl gave a description of a tie used to blindfold her during the assault.


    Leeds Crown Court (Image: Alex Cousins / SWNS.com)
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    A tie matching the description was found in Byram's home.

    Byram, from Dewsbury, pleaded guilty to rape at an earlier hearing.

    He has previous convictions for arson, child cruelty and assault.

    Ms Robinson, mitigating, told the court: "The best mitigation that this defendant has is his plea."

    She added: "He has a genuine appreciation of the harm that he has caused."


    Byram was told he must serve a custodial sentence of ten years followed by an extended licence period one of year.

    He must also go on the sex offender register for life.


    Judge Neil Clark told Byram: "The true effect of this type of behaviour is the psychological impact.

    "You can offer no explanation for what happened.

    "There must have been some sexual motivation for happened."

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