*headdesk*

[mousme]

Sometimes I hate this job.

I just had to explain to a hysterical girl from India that no, we couldn't help her with her problem. It's the usual story: girl meets guy online. Guy sweet-talks girl into hanky panky with a camera. Guy turns around and blackmails girl with compromising pictures. Guy further proves himself to be an utter douchebag by harassing her and her entire family by phone and email, and goes to far as to mail CDs of blackmail material to them.

Normally she'd have to go to her local police, but she's terrified to because she's afraid she'll get killed if word leaks out to the public and the local police aren't exactly known for their tact and discretion.

The man fed her all sorts of information, most of it bogus except for one address that I could find in Mississauga. The poor girl kept begging me to use the records she was giving me to track him down and prevent him from calling her mother tomorrow (I'm not sure how she thought that this was somehow all going to happen in less than 24 hours), which is why shows like CSI and Criminal Minds piss me off (even though I like watching them): I don't have that information at my fingertips, and I sure as hell can't just trace someone like that without the authorization of a police officer and a file number and most likely a warrant, all of which take time to obtain.

I finally managed to get hold of an investigator at Peel Regional Police, Mississauga division, and asked that they give it the good ol' college try. The girl was having hysterics, threatened to kill herself rather than have this go public, and I felt a little callous just saying "There's nothing we can do," and hanging up on her. The problem, of course, is that there really is very little we can do in this sort of situation.

In short: fuck.

Comments

[fearsclave.livejournal.com]

If I ever have daughters, I will tell them that the correct response to "don't worry, I won't post this on the internet" is to club him senseless with his camera, get dressed, and leave.

[pkwench.livejournal.com]

Oh, God, that's just vile on so many levels. I hope that guy gets to model his testicles as nose rings. That poor girl. That poor, stupid, naive girl. I hate that we live in a world where people feel like it's just peachy to take advantage of others like this. Not to mention that someone might actually have to fear for their safety if anyone should find out that something like this happened. Jesus.

Hang in there and try not to feel too useless. You did what you could and maybe more than other people would do. I know it's not a huge comfort.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

They live on different continents. The correct response to "don't worry, I won't post this on the internet" in this case is to say "Fuck off, douchebag," and block him from all further contact. Then hire an anonymous hit man to go break his kneecaps with said camera.

[mousme.livejournal.com]

I makes me want to hit someone really, really hard. Preferably the douchebag who took advantage of this girl's obvious naivete.

It makes me pray that there is such a thing as karma and that it comes back on him tenfold. Douchebag.

[ladyiolanthe.livejournal.com]

:/

That sucks.

[(Anonymous)]

Paze at work sez:

Holy crap!
That poor girl.
Karma would be great, but, in the meantime, it sounds like you have gone above and beyond in order to give what help you can. Maybe it's not as much as you'd like to do, but it's a helluva lot more than many in your position would do. You are awesome.

xox