Teenage Paedophile Hunters
Inside the ethical quagmire of Swiss vigilante paedophile hunting.
Posturing online as young girls, groups of teens have begun to ambush predators in groups, usually beating up the suspect and recording for social media. Official organisations criticise their at-times sadistic and unofficial methods.
Inspired by a notorious Russian internet figure, the rise of “cowboy” style paedophile hunting poses risks to legal authority. Swiss police have arrested 19 minors for their harm to suspected paedophiles, raising questions about the appropriateness of their methods. The group leaders, some as young as 13, are described by radio host Marco Jaggli as “complex, very intelligent, determined, with a lot of rage.” Judge Fabiola Gnesa echoes this concern: “What are we going to do with these kids? How can we give them the right measure or punishment? How can we help them?” Neila Moore, founder of Team Moore, a group which works with legal authorities to apprehend paedophiles, is also concerned by the rise in this activity: “What happened in Ticino is happening all over Europe; this kind of action undermines the work of groups like ours”.
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