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<\/p>\nThe man, who was in his 70s, died four days after members of an online anti-paedophile vigilante group went to his home to confront over a string operation it had run against him<\/p>\n
05:00, 12 Jul 2026Updated 08:30, 12 Jul 2026<\/p>\n
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The man was pronounced dead at the scene in Co Leitrim on Monday and his body taken to the mortuary at Sligo University Hospital – stock photo<\/p>\n
A pensioner has taken his own life – days after being confronted by members of an online anti-paedophile vigilante group.<\/p>\n
The Irish Mirror has learned that the man, who was in his 70s, died by suicide at his home in Co Leitrim<\/a> on Monday.<\/p>\n He died four days after members of the vigilante group went to his property in the area to confront over a string operation it had run against him.<\/p>\n The man refused to come out of his house to talk to the men – who later said they contacted gardai and made a statement about him.<\/p>\n Gardai<\/a> told us they were aware of the incident.<\/p>\n The group alleged the man had been making sexualised comments online to what he believed was a 13-year-old girl – but was actually an undercover decoy who was part of the vigilante group.<\/p>\n The group alleged on a Facebook page that the man immediately started making sexualised comments when he was chatting online with the decoy – including talking about the size of his penis and asking if she wore matching underwear.<\/p>\n \u201cThis man is a wild piece of work,\u201d one of the operatives said on a Facebook video about the man.<\/p>\n Get all the big crime and court stories direct to your phone on our new WhatsApp service. Sign up here<\/a>. If you don’t like our group you can leave it at any time<\/p>\n He also said the man urged the decoy to delete the messages they exchanged – and added that he was very interested in the supposed child\u2019s mother.<\/p>\n He added: \u201cHe also went to on to say he would love to kiss her and be her first.<\/p>\n \u201cHe kept saying to her \u2018you\u2019re very young and a very pretty young girl\u2019.<\/p>\n \u201cThis child is 13 years of age – this man is 70 years of age.<\/p>\n \u201cHe wanted to be her friend, I don\u2019t know what he would have in common with a child.<\/p>\n \u201cHe also said to the child that if he got caught he could go to jail and he would be known as a pervert.\u201d<\/p>\n The man added: \u201cFrom get go he knew what he was doing.\u201d<\/p>\n The outfit is one of a number of online paedophile hunter groups that go undercover to snare men who have a sexual interest in children.<\/p>\n The decoys who pretend to be kids always stress to the man that they are underage – and never make the first approach.<\/p>\n The groups usually conduct text conversations with men who repeatedly make sexualised comments to what they believe is a child – and often try to meet the kids to sexually abuse them.<\/p>\n Dozens of men in Ireland and Britain have been caught by the undercover volunteers – who pass on all the evidence they gather to law enforcement.<\/p>\n That has led to several high profile convictions, including the RTE<\/a> producer Kieran Creaven<\/a>.<\/p>\n Kieran Creaven<\/p>\n Creaven, 64, was caged for 18 months in Leeds, England, after he was caught in such a sting.<\/p>\n He travelled to the city as he thought he was going to meet a 13-year-old child he could sexually abuse.<\/p>\n But the child turned out to be a decoy – and Creaven was charged and convicted in the United Kingdom. He was later jailed for 10 years in Ireland for sick sex offences against a young girl in the Philippines.<\/p>\n Gardai told us in a statement that it was called to a domestic residence in Leitrim on Monday.<\/p>\n The force said: \u201cA male, aged in his 70s, was pronounced deceased at the scene and his body taken to the mortuary at Sligo University Hospital.<\/p>\n \u201cThe local Coroner has been informed.\u201d<\/p>\n The force separately said it was aware of an incident that occurred at a property in Leitrim on July 2.<\/p>\n That was the night when the paedophile hunters approached the man at his home.<\/p>\n The force stressed it was its job to investigate crime in Ireland – nobody else\u2019s.<\/p>\n A Garda spokesman told us: \u201cGarda\u00ed are aware of an incident that occurred at a residential premises in Co Leitrim on 2nd July 2026.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/0_Screenshot-2025-07-31-at-190436.png\")
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