Police warn against vigilante justice after alleged child sex luring and assaults

Calgary police have laid multiple charges after an online dating app was allegedly used by a group to pose as underage teens in order to lure and assault other men.

Officers have charged six men and one youth, including the alleged assailants and three purported victims. The matter has spurred police to issue a warning about "vigilante justice."

"It would appear on its surface that they thought they were being righteous … in looking at potential people who were trying to lure young people, specifically young males, and target them," said Insp. Keith Hurley at a news conference on Thursday.

Hurley said police encourage people who have information about potential criminal behaviour to report it to them rather than taking matters into their own hands.

Hurley said it's alleged the suspects used the dating app Grindr to contact men. He said the three incidents occurred in early March — two on March 9 and the third on March 14.

Police claim that during one meeting arranged online, four people confronted a man, assaulted him with a baseball bat and replica gun, slashed the interior and exterior of a vehicle and its tires, then left the scene. 

Police say their investigation began on March 14, after one of the alleged victims reported an assault. 

By reviewing surveillance camera footage, investigators say they identified a vehicle of interest. 

Two men and one youth are charged with aggravated assault, mischief over $5,000, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, robbery with a firearm and extortion.

A third man faces charges of aggravated assault, mischief over $5,000, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, robbery with a firearm, extortion and disguise with intent.

Three purported victims of the assaults also face charges for allegedly arranging to meet a minor for sexual purposes. All three are charged with child luring and invitation to sexual touching. 

"That wasn't the initial goal of the investigation," Hurley said.

"But subsequent information came to light that we would be remiss to ignore when there's potentially other offences occurring from this one."

Hurley said investigators concluded there was no evidence to suggest the attacks were motivated by hate.

All seven people facing charges are scheduled to appear in court later this month.

A shocking case

Criminologist Wade Deisman called the incident a fairly shocking case that represents an escalation of virtual vigilantism that involves shaming people online into physical assault.

The Calgary Police Service's decision to lay charges against the people lured by the sting operation also struck Deisman as unusual. Law enforcement agencies have, in the past, chosen not to act on evidence like this out of concern it could encourage more vigilantism. But also, Deisman said, he's surprised because the evidence could be seen as fruit from a poisonous tree, potentially obtained by illicit means. Police will have to argue to the court that the evidence is in the higher interest of the public good. 

"If they're making arrangements for the folks that they've lured to meet them somewhere and then they plan to deliver a beating or whatever else they're going to do, then we have judge, jury and executioner," said Deisman, the University of the Fraser Valley's associate dean of social sciences.

"And then we have a real breakdown, and we have a real worry about people believing that it's OK to take the law into their own hands."

There are many high-profile examples of this vigilantism, like the U.S. television series To Catch a Predator, as well as the Canadian group Creep Catchers. But he said social media has made this phenomenon more predominant, and online accusations have often led to the wrong people being accused or to interference in law enforcement investigations, Deisman said.

"More often than not, if these are real pedophile cases that they're involved with, they're interfering with that business," said Deisman.