Anniebach
The desperate mother could have gone to the police
We don't know the details of why she didn't, though?
If she had gone to the police, the man would still be exposed, if there is a case to answer. Whilst they carried out their investigation (assuming they had the resources to do so - not a given these days) would you want to see the man on your screen, or do you think the BBC should have moved him from his role at first then suspended him when more information became known? Or something else?
Apparently the woman went to the BBC who say they investigated but kept him on screen, which was distressing for the woman, and arguably sends a worrying message about their priorities. Then she asked the Sun for help, and the story got out. At that point, the BBC removed him from his role and then suspended him when further information became available, which is probably what would have happened had the mother gone to the police, so there is no difference from the POV of the accused.
People complained about Jimmy Savile, and the BBC did nothing. Nor did the police. I'm not saying that this of is the same order of magnitude, but I can understand a reluctance to rely on either of them, particularly if time is of the essence and the BBC has sat on your complaint for several weeks.
I don't know any more than anyone else. I know who has been named on social media, and that he hasn't responded, (which is his right) and that when Clive Myrie listed the people whose names had been mentioned but were not guilty this man was not mentioned. I don't want it to be him, but nor do I want to see another case of 'little people' being preyed on by those in the public eye. It happens far too often, and there is very little that ordinary people can do, as justice is so expensive.
I don't know what I would do if that were my child, but I think I would stop at nothing to get the money stopped so that s/he couldn't buy the drugs. It may be that this is all untrue, but I doubt it. The Sun has red hot lawyers who will have scrutinised every word of what has been published (which amounts to very little, really - that the complaint was made and the BBC did nothing). The rest of it has happened after social media made it impossible for them to continue to do nothing.
The power of social media is debatable - it can be a force for harm for sure - but it is also democratising, and allows those who can't afford representation elsewhere to have a voice. Would Savile have got away with it for so long if social media had been around then?
