Parents outraged by illicit photos

The couple said they were at a pool area with their one-year-old son and his cousins, aged two and three, when they spotted a man taking pictures of the children, South Coast Herald reported.

Uncomfortable about the situation, the father reportedly confronted the man and grabbed his phone.

His wife went into the photo gallery of the phone and found about five photographs of her son and others of small boys photographed at beaches and other public areas.

Two men were then questioned by police who arrived later.

“If they can do this, how quickly can they snatch a child? What do these men do with the photographs?” the father said.

Police spokesperson Captain Gerald Mfeka said no case had been opened yet and urged people who experienced anything similar to report it to the police immediately.

“Parents are urged to be extra careful when taking their children to the beach,” he added.

Jacqui Thomas from the Pink Ladies Missing Children’s Organisation said the incident was a problem associated with the digital age.

“It is easier for people to take photos for nefarious purposes and get away with it,” she said.

She said a lot of these photographs are posted on websites, sold on the internet or used to target younger children.

Thomas added that children who are photographed are often targeted according to certain characteristics such as eye or hair colour.