Snapchat has been slammed by the prime minister for allegedly refusing to cooperate with police investigating claims a murderer is using the app to taunt his victim’s family from prison.
Breck Bednar was 14 when he was groomed by computer engineer Lewis Daynes, an 18-year-old who chatted to him online over the course of many months.
Breck was lured to a flat in Greys, Sussex, in February 2014 by Daynes, who slit his throat during an attack believed to have been sexually motivated. He was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 25 years in 2015.
Daynes has previously written and published two blog posts intimidating the victim’s mother and now the family say Breck’s 17-year-old sister Chloe has received Snapchat messages threatening to violate his grave and harm his loved ones, which they believe have been sent by his killer.
The matter was flagged to Theresa May during PMQs when Tory MP for Croydon South, Chris Philip told the Commons: “The police have asked Snapchat to provide the data that would help them definitively identify who has been sending these messages, for example, data about the device from which the messages were sent.”
To shouts of “shame” from backbenchers, Philip said Snapchat was claiming police would need to appeal to the United States and “go through a one-year process to get this vital information” as he urged May to intervene.
“Does the prime minister agree this is completely unacceptable?” he asked.
“Does she join me in calling on Snapchat and other social media companies to promptly cooperate with police inquiries and if they do not do so does she agree that legislation is required?”
May paid tribute to Breck’s mother Lorin LaFave for her “brave and powerful” campaigning on the issue of internet grooming and told the Commons the Ministry of Justice was “urgently looking into” the case.
“I agree with him,” she said. “We want social media companies to recognise the responsibilities they have and to work with law enforcement agencies.
“It has become increasingly difficult for UK law enforcement to access data containing threats to public safety if data is held or controlled in other countries.
“That’s why government did recently legislate and pass the Crime (Overseas Production Orders) Act, which will give law enforcement agencies the power to obtain electronic data controlled by providers outside the UK, where an international agreement is in place.
“He raises the United States - we expect to establish the first such agreement with the United States.”
LaFave told HuffPost UK her teenage daughter received a series of messages via Snapchat from somebody variously masquerading as a friend of Daynes, Daynes himself and even her murdered brother.
The person has also threatened to desecrate Breck’s body and grave.
She said: “I have been waiting to get some help, it’s not just about one child, my teenager, it’s about all the children.
“My daughter blocked, deleted, then had to close her account. That’s what the police wanted her to do. I found that quite unfair that she had to stop communicating with her friends.
“The police don’t have any power. When I met Snapchat UK at an internet safety event, they said they would be able to help. But my police investigator said they have to go through the US, using old protocol.
“I want to find out who is harassing my daughter and if it turns out to be the murderer he must be stopped and this must go on his record. If it’s his family, if it’s some random, we need to know that too.”
Kent Police confirmed enquiries are underway after the force had received a report of malicious communications in January.
On Wednesday The Times newspaper reported that Home Secretary Sajid Javid has now intervened by writing to the US-based company and demanding to know what action they are taking.
A spokesman said: “The Home Secretary has the utmost sympathy for Breck’s loved ones and the vile abuse they’ve suffered. He’s in touch with their local MP and plans to meet the family to hear about their experiences.
“The Home Secretary has also written to Snapchat to ascertain what action they are taking. Internet platforms need to do much more to ensure they are tackling harmful content and protecting their vulnerable users.
“Our forthcoming White Paper will set out the responsibilities of tech firms, how they should be met and enforcement options if they are not.”
Security Minister Ben Wallace brought in the Overseas Production Orders Act last month as he sought to tackle a 700% rise in child abuse being reported by tech companies in the last five years.
The Bill allows law enforcement agencies to apply for a UK court order to get stored electronic data from overseas in a bid to counter serious crime and terrorism.
Speaking to the Press Association as the Bill went through Parliament, Wallace said the new law would mean child rapists and terrorists could be caught within days, not years.
Treaty plans begun under US President Barack Obama will allow British prosecutors to bypass foreign courts and apply directly to the 99% of tech companies based outside the UK for data relating to child abuse.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) estimates there are up to 80,000 predators who pose a threat to children, Wallace said, with 1,600 police referrals in 2014 rising to 10,000 referrals in 2017.
A Snapchat spokesperson told HuffPost UK: “We’ve put a lot of thought and effort into making Snapchat a place that prioritises close friends and privacy and we make it very difficult for anyone you don’t know to contact you.
“We understand how upsetting this situation is for the Bednar family. We have provided advice on restoring privacy settings and we have also terminated the user account.
“We value the strong cooperation that we have with our law enforcement partners in the UK and we work hard to be as helpful as we can. We welcome any efforts that help to speed up the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) process whilst allowing for appropriate judicial oversight and avoiding conflicts of law.”
A spokesman for the prison service said: “No grieving family should be subject to such cruel behaviour and while there is currently no evidence that this offender was involved, we are working closely to the police to get to the bottom of this.”
Daynes, who was aged 18 at the time of the offence, admitted murder at Chelmsford Crown Court. He had tied Breck with tape and stabbed him to death before calling the police and claiming he acted in self-defence.
In January last year, LaFave, who has since launched The Breck Foundation charity and is campaigning with the NSPCC to raise awareness of online dangers, told an inquiry how the menacing blogs Daynes posted from behind bars led her to fear he had escaped from jail.
Appearing before the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse to give evidence as part of its investigation into the internet, LaFave said the second online post left her so shaken she called 999.
Efforts to get them removed were then rebuffed by Google, the hearing was told, who said she should contact her son’s killer directly. LaFave said Daynes had apparently been able to publish the pieces by using software that disguised his location.
Last year LaFave appeared in a film shown in secondary schools to highlight the dangers of online gaming. Named Breck’s Last Game, it was a collaboration between four police forces – Essex, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Surrey.
Featuring the 999 call made to police by Daynes, it captures the events leading to Breck’s death.
LaFave said: “Breck’s story shows how easily grooming can happen.
“He met the predator through an online friendship group and would have been flattered to have an intelligent, older mentor helping him expand his gaming skills.”
She added: “It’s so important for us to raise awareness of the fact that boys can be groomed too. Breck’s came after international media surrounding the Rochdale and Rotherham cases, where the victims were all girls.
“His version wasn’t the ‘typical’ type of grooming people had heard about in the news.
“His story shows even regular school boys can make mistakes if they aren’t educated to recognise the signs of grooming and exploitation.
The full version of Breck’s Last Game will be released publicly in Spring this year.