Police chief warns of thousands of child abusers on internet chat rooms

UK's top child protection officer says 4,000 men found to be using a single online chat room this year

Thousands of men are using forums to express their desires, police say (Getty)

The number of men in Britain interested in sexually abusing children could be in the tens of thousands, a police chief has warned.

Simon Bailey, National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) lead for child protection said that 4,000 men in the UK were found to be using a single online chat room by investigators monitoring a site this year.

The Norfolk Constabulary Chief Constable told The Guardian: “I believe there are tens of thousands of men that are now going into chat rooms and forums with a view to grooming children.

“Technology has afforded an access to children that people who have a sexual interest in children never had before.”

The figure could be more than 20,000, he said.

Mr Bailey also warned that a lack of resources meant police could not tackle all offenders, and officers had to prioritise the most serious threats posed by perpetrators.

“Some lower-level offenders cannot be arrested and taken to court. There is just not the capacity,” he told the newspaper.

But he said that “thousands and thousands” of officers “still would not be enough” to deal with all child abuse offenders, adding: “This is one of those wicked problems we simply cannot arrest our way out of.”

Mr Bailey also called for a crackdown from tech giants on youngsters’ use of live streaming platforms such as Periscope and Facebook Live.

It comes after the NPCC and the National Crime Agency launched a campaign to encourage parents to be alert to the dangers of live streaming and warn their children of the risks.

At the start of the campaign in early December, Mr Bailey said: “We need internet companies to help us stop access to sexual abuse images and videos and prevent abuse happening on their platforms.

“We need parents and carers to talk to their children about healthy relationships and staying safe online.”

Press Association