Facebook sex crimes soar: Offences via social networks more than quadruple in last four years

Mirror ^ | Staff

[Morgana]

Sex offences linked to Facebook or Twitter users have rocketed in the last four years, a Mirror investigation reveals.

And in an another alarming trend, paedophiles are increasingly logging on to the social networking sites to target children.

A total of 1,642 cases since 2009 have been reported to police where the sites played a part in the commission or aftermath of a crime.

Statistics obtained under freedom of information laws show the number has more than quadrupled from 139 four years ago to 614 last year.

Worryingly, more than half the 1,395 victims of all offences – apart from rape – were under 16.

And the number of alleged rapes involving Facebook and Twitter rose from 22 in 2009 to 117 last year.

Detectives say personal information on the sites is being used by predators to identify vulnerable girls or women and gain their trust.

One senior officer said: “Sex offenders, and particularly serial sex offenders, are adept at seeking out people who are perhaps more likely to let their guard down. We know that some sex offenders will wander the streets looking for vulnerable people late at night. But there is absolutely no reason to think they won’t spend time online doing exactly the same.”