THOMAS HAGGER FROM WALTHAM ABBEY CAUGHT IN ONLINE CHILD GROOMING PLOT NEAR ESSEX

In March 2018, Thomas Hagger, a man residing in Waltham Abbey with a known history of mental health issues and registered as a sex offender, attempted to groom an eight-year-old girl through online communications. The disturbing incident unfolded while the girl’s mother was in the bath, unaware of the sinister messages being exchanged. Hagger, who is autistic, initiated contact with the young girl via her mother’s account on the live streaming platform Bigo, after the child had asked to borrow her mother’s phone to watch YouTube videos.

During their interaction, Hagger made inappropriate requests, asking for photographs of the girl wearing 'Pocahontas knickers' and attempting to persuade her to move the conversation to Snapchat. The situation escalated when Hagger sent a graphic image of his genitals to the girl. The girl’s mother, upon discovering the messages, took swift action by impersonating her daughter in the chat to gather further evidence. She then handed this evidence over to a group of self-styled paedophile hunters known as Internet Interceptors.

On September 15 of the previous year, the Internet Interceptors tracked down Hagger near his residence in Epping, Essex. They conducted a citizen’s arrest while simultaneously calling emergency services. During the confrontation, the group claimed they had reported Hagger to the police earlier that same morning, but were told that officers were 'too busy' to respond immediately and would not be able to act for up to three days. This was particularly alarming given that Hagger had been on the sex offenders register for just three months at that point, following a prior attempt to groom a 12-year-old girl.

The situation turned tense when Hagger’s brother arrived at the scene in a car and intervened, shouting at the paedophile hunters to leave his brother alone. The brother’s intervention was aggressive, and he attempted to physically remove Hagger from the scene. Hagger tried to get into his brother’s vehicle, but the women from the Internet Interceptors blocked his attempt. In a dramatic turn, one of the women jumped into the front passenger seat to prevent the suspect from fleeing. The brother then shouted obscenities, demanding Hagger to get out of his car.

Police officers arrived shortly afterward, breaking up the heated exchange and arresting Hagger in handcuffs. The girl’s mother, who chose to remain anonymous, later described her distressing experience. She explained that she was only in the bath for about 30 minutes before she checked her phone and found alarming messages from Hagger directed at her daughter. She recounted how Hagger had asked her daughter to come off the app and add him on Snapchat, despite her being only eight years old. The mother detailed how she pretended to be her daughter in the chat, during which Hagger asked her to FaceTime him, get 'naughty,' and inappropriately inquire about her underwear. Within twenty minutes, Hagger had told her she was beautiful and sent a graphic image of his genitals.

Following the incident, the Internet Interceptors acted swiftly, tracking Hagger down and providing evidence to the police. The authorities initially planned to delay action until the following Sunday, citing their busy schedule, despite Hagger’s recent inclusion on the sex offenders register. The case was further complicated by Hagger’s mental health, which led to him being deemed unfit to plead during court proceedings.

At Chelmsford Crown Court, a jury found that Hagger had indeed committed the offences, but due to his mental health condition, the verdict was classified as a finding of fact rather than a formal guilt ruling. On March 16, Hagger was sentenced to a five-year sexual harm prevention order and a two-year supervision order. Additionally, a restraining order was issued to prevent him from contacting the victim.

Footage of Hagger’s arrest, captured live on Facebook, shows him being approached by two women while walking his dog. When questioned, Hagger claimed he could barely remember speaking to the girl because he was 'tired' at the time. One of the women, named Julie, displayed the explicit image Hagger had sent and asked him if he thought it was acceptable to send such images to a child. Hagger responded that it was not acceptable and claimed he 'doesn’t like paedophiles at all.' Julie confronted him further, telling him he was a paedophile for asking for pictures of Pocahontas knickers and sending a penis image to an eight-year-old.

Hagger, who also claimed to suffer from dyspraxia—a disorder affecting motor skills—admitted to sending the explicit image and expressed being 'distraught' over his actions. Julie emphasized the gravity of his misconduct, noting that his mother’s intervention had been fortunate. She explained that she had provided police with all relevant information that morning, criticizing the police for their delayed response. The situation escalated when Hagger’s brother arrived in a car, attempting to seize the camera and shouting for the police to handle the matter. The women intervened to prevent Hagger from fleeing, and police officers arrived shortly after to arrest him and end the confrontation.

In a statement, the girl’s mother expressed her distress, recounting how she had been in the bath for only half an hour before discovering the disturbing messages. She detailed how Hagger had asked her daughter to come off her app and add him on Snapchat, despite her being only eight. The mother described how she pretended to be her daughter during the chat, which included requests for FaceTime and explicit questions about her underwear. She revealed that within twenty minutes, Hagger had sent a graphic image of his genitals. The mother praised the Internet Interceptors for their quick response, which led to Hagger’s arrest and prevented further harm.

Hagger’s history of offending is extensive. In June 2017, he was given a sexual harm prevention order after attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity, causing a child to watch a sexual act, and making indecent images of children. Police investigations uncovered that he had sent sexual messages to a 12-year-old girl on Facebook, and his devices contained numerous indecent images, including eight from Category A, the most serious classification. Despite being deemed unfit to stand trial at that time, a jury found he had committed the offences based on the evidence presented.

Earlier, in June 2017, Hagger, then 27 and living in Waltham Abbey, was sentenced after being convicted of five child sex offences committed between January 2012 and June 2015. He received a two-year supervision order, five years on the sex offenders register, and a five-year sexual harm prevention order. His computer was confiscated and destroyed as part of the sentence. The case had initially been investigated in Wales after police received a report of an attempt to encourage a 14-year-old girl to remove her clothes during a Skype chat. The evidence revealed that Hagger believed he was speaking to a young girl, asking her to take off her school uniform, and received an image titled 'boobs.jpg.'

Throughout these proceedings, Hagger’s mental health issues played a significant role, leading to his being declared unfit to stand trial at certain points. Nonetheless, the evidence demonstrated a pattern of predatory behavior involving minors, and the courts took measures to restrict his contact with children and monitor his activities closely.