Thursday January 18, 2007
'Most Wanted' spotlight falls on new offender
As the success of the ‘Most Wanted’ website continues, the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre is today asking for the public’s help in locating a new offender.
Thanks to public sightings, four of the five subjects who originally appeared on the site have been located by the authorities.
People are now being asked to support the search for Colin Taylor. He is sought for failing to comply with notification requirements under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and his details have been posted on the Most Wanted site at www.ceop.gov.uk/wanted.
46 year old Taylor was last seen in the Northumbria area. Intelligence suggests he may have travelled abroad and could be somewhere in Europe. In the past he has also made visits to the Indian Subcontinent and the Far East.
The arrival of Most Wanted means that individuals who fail to notify as a way of evading management are running out of time,
said Jim Gamble, CEO at the CEOP Centre.
So far the public have been instrumental to our success in locating offenders. I’d ask them to visit the site and take a look at Colin Taylor’s photograph and details. There they will also find outstanding offenders Peter Weatherly and Joshua Karney. If they know where these people are I’d urge them to get in touch.
I cannot emphasise strongly enough the need for the public to act responsibly if they believe they know the location of a sought offender. They must make immediate reports of sightings so that the police can take appropriate action. Any vigilante activity will be robustly dealt with and is likely to constitute a criminal offence, resulting in arrest and prosecution.
However, if you are a convicted offender and think you can escape your notification requirements, or think you can move out of your region and go missing, then think again. Your details may now be posted on this site. Your picture will be there for the public to see, so that people can report you and we can locate you.
After all, in our eyes you forego your right to anonymity when you fail to fulfil the terms of your conviction. In the interests of children everywhere we will do all we can to find you and to prosecute. Thanks to this site, your opportunities to simply disappear are diminishing more rapidly than ever before.
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre continues to appeal for information about outstanding offenders, Joshua Karney and Peter Wheatherley. They are sought for failing to comply with notification requirements under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
Weatherley is missing from the South Yorkshire area but is known to have links in the north of England. Intelligence also suggests that he could be in Spain, or elsewhere in Europe.
Karney has connections in the Lancashire area but is known to travel throughout the United Kingdom.
Further information and photographs can been found at www.ceop.gov.uk/wanted.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Members of the public can safely help locate ‘missing’ offenders by viewing photos and descriptions via the CEOP and Crimestoppers websites. If they recognise someone they are urged to contact the local police force, or if they wish to remain anonymous they can call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
The initiative to publish details of some of the UK’s child sex offenders forms a key element of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre’s approach to tracking and bringing child sex offenders to account. All individuals published on the site have previously been convicted for an offence for which they have already served punishment within the criminal justice system. They are sought because they have subsequently failed to fulfil their requirements as part of their placement on the Sex Offenders Register.
Details of previous offences will not be disclosed to the media for the reasons stated above.
Photographs of offenders will only be published with the consent of the local police force. Individual forces are under no obligation to publish their offenders on the Most Wanted site. Further offenders will be considered for inclusion on the ‘Most Wanted’ site in consultation with local police forces.
The decision to publish the details of all offenders detailed on the site has been risk assessed by the CEOP Centre and relevant local forces.
The CEOP Centre works in both online and offline environments to protect children from sexual exploitation. Full information on all areas of work as well as online safety messages and access to online reporting can be found at www.ceop.gov.uk.
The organisation is affiliated to the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) and powers are derived from the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005. It is based in Pimlico, London with developing outreach channels to all areas of both domestic and international policing as well as industry and specialist support and educational faculties.
For further information contact:
Clive Michel / Sarah Shakespeare
Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre
0800 000 3434