The civilian hunt for paedosexuals is getting completely out of hand, say the police and the judiciary. There is little heed to the call to stop doing this. ‘Pedojager’ L. (22) from Haarlem lures alleged child abusers to dates with minors and then ‘exposes’ them online. What drives this citizen sleuth to play for his own judge?
It is already dark outside when L. is waiting on the station square in Haarlem. He was supposed to come alone, but has a wardrobe from a guy who traveled from Utrecht “to stand up for his colleague.”
Somewhere in a remote corner, between the parked bicycles in the pouring rain, L. and his partner keep their mouth masks and hoods on. They don’t want to be recognized. L. takes the lead. He prefers not to use the term pedo-hunter. “I’m just someone who sticks up for kids, you know?”
Penalties too low
According to them, pedosexuality is a major problem, which the police do not do enough about. “Child abuse is so common that it is simply impossible to keep up. The sentences are far too low, so they are released quickly. The police and judiciary have too little capacity and other priorities. Someone has to do it.”
“We don’t provoke anything, everything comes purely from them”
NH News published earlier this month an article about the self-proclaimed ‘pedo hunters’ from Haarlem. Through various social media accounts, L. and his accomplices ‘out’ alleged paedosexuals. They do this by sharing name, place of residence, (nude) photos and screenshots of chat conversations.
In January, an Alkmaarder in his thirties met a ’14-year-old girl’ at Haarlem station via Instagram. There he ran straight into the arms of L. and his friends. “We don’t provoke anything, everything comes purely from them. Otherwise I’m also punishable and I absolutely don’t want that. I also just have to come home tonight, you understand.”
“Stand still, I’m not going to hit you”
After a wild chase, he manages to shake off the group by jumping into a departing train. Although the men claim never to use (heavy) violence, things can sometimes get violent in the shared videos.
Bystanders are also incited to join the manhunt. In the video with the Alkmaarder you can see that L. shouts during the chase that the man is a pedophile. He is then knocked out by a bystander. “I give him five chances to just talk normally,” he responds. “He chooses to run himself, while I say: stand still, I’m not going to hit you.”
Listen below to the interview with ‘pedojager’ L.
It online names and shame of these alleged paedosexuals can cause a lot of reputational damage. For example, a man from Zwolle had to leave his house in 2020 after being ‘outed’ by a self-proclaimed pedo hunter. According to the Stentor because dozens of angry local residents wanted to take him out.
And that is precisely the intention for L. and his allies. “If someone in such a conversation aims for sex with the minor, in our eyes it is always a paedosexual. Everyone must be warned about such a pervert, so we make his name and place of residence known. It could just be your neighbor or someone who works at your child’s school. Protecting the child is the most important thing, we don’t think about the risks.”
No matter how noble the cause may seem in their eyes, with sedition and the names and shame these people are breaking the law. “We do not play before their own judge, but before the judge of the child. So that the child does not get traumas,” his partner responds. “We use the camera purely to show the police what this gentleman is doing. And for our own safety.”
Digital pillory
When the interview takes a critical turn, L.’s friend launches a personal attack. “So you think we didn’t do that right? Do you think so? Do you support that?” Don’t these people have the right to a fair trial, instead of a public condemnation? “So you’re looking at the pedophile’s damage? Do you have kids,” he asks. “If you had children, you would think very differently.”
For now, the men are not done hunting yet. “Only when the sentences go up sharply and better and long-term assistance is provided. You can’t just send these people back into society.”
“We are negative about these actions, because they regularly go hand in hand with criminal offenses, such as assault and destruction,” a spokesman for the Noord-Holland police responded earlier. “The public convictions also violate the rights of citizens. If there is a suspicion that someone is guilty of child abuse, report it to the police.”
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