Police Bust Huge Global Pedophile Ring

'Draconian' plan would have registered anyone working with kids

(NEWSER) - Britain has halted work on a massive pedophile database just weeks before it was to be introduced. Government ministers say the vetting program—which would have required gathering information on 9 million people—will be scaled down and redesigned along "common sense" lines, the Telegraph reports. More»

Itsy-bitsy teeny-weeny thing prematurely sexualizes girls, say critics

(NEWSER) - A UK clothing chain has yanked a padded bikini top for young girls off its shelves amidst charges that the product sexualizes children. Discount retailer Primark offered the $6 bikini set in pink with gold stars and black with white polka dots, in sizes small enough for 7-year-olds. Child protection advocates slammed Primark for "premature sexualization and unprincipled advertising," BBC reports. More»

Social workers knew of incest, but failed to act: Report

(NEWSER) - British authorities publicly apologized yesterday for failing to protect two women from the violent, domineering father who raped them repeatedly over 25 years and forced them to bear 9 children. An official review of the case found the family had been in contact with 28 different social services agencies and 100 members of staff over 35 years, none of whom did anything to stop the abuse, the Telegraph reports. More»

(NEWSER) - An international pedophile gang that preyed on infants through teens has been convicted in a groundbreaking case in Scotland that sentenced lawbreakers for the first time for conspiring to carry out sex attacks, reports the Times of London. The eight men will be imprisoned for an indefinite period until they are judged to no longer be a threat. The judge blasted their "utterly horrific" crimes, often carried out against the children of friends. More than 100 men have been linked to the gang. More»

Briton who ran Albanian facility found guilty of sex with minors; two others on trial

(NEWSER) - UK police helped cover up sexual abuse at an orphanage in Albania run by a Briton, the Guardian reports after investigating the scandal. The shelter’s director, 57-year-old David Brown, was convicted yesterday and sentenced to 20 years in an Albanian jail. British police were tipped off in 2004, but did not pass on the information because Brown promised to set up a new orphanage. More»