EVEN after Caterham boy Breck Bednar's murder, other youngsters are still being preyed on by potential internet predators, according to his mother.
Lorin LaFave is waging a campaign promoting internet safety for young people in the wake of her son's savage death at the hands of Lewis Daynes, who Breck met online.
She told the Mirror this week that teenagers still run the risk of online grooming.
Breck, 14, of Crescent Road, who attended St Bede's School in Redhill, died after being stabbed in the neck.
He had been tied up in a "sexually and sadistically motivated crime" last February, Chelmsford Crown Court heard last week, after being "controlled and manipulated" online by 19-year-old Daynes, from Essex.
Daynes – described as a "psychotic animal" by Ms LaFave – was given a minimum 25 years jail term.
Ms LaFave said on Tuesday: "After reading what Breck went through, a pupil at Warwick School in Redhill who had been contacted by a stranger online discussed it with her parents and did not proceed with the contact.
"And even one of my 11-year-old daughters (one of triplets) was asked on a chat site by a 23-year-old she had never met to send him a photograph.
"There are evil people out there who are using the internet to prey on children."
Ms LaFave told how, two months before Breck's death, she had called Surrey Police to alert them that her son was being groomed online. Tragically, it was not acted upon.
She said: "I suspect because Daynes had not made any sexual comments, police did not take my call seriously.
"But grooming can take many forms, including psychological pressure.
"I've lost faith in Surrey Police – I just hope they revise their procedures so something like this can never happen to a child again."
Ms LaFave praised the Child Exploitation and Online Protection centre for their helpful advice and support after her daughter's near-miss.
The Breck Bednar Memorial Fund (at www.breckbednar.com) has been formed to highlight the perils of gaming and communicating with people online.
So far the fund has raised £25,000, which will be spent on spreading the message to potentially vulnerable youngsters via the dissemination of literature and Play Virtual, Live Real wristbands.
Ms LaFave also plans to speak in schools about the dangers of online grooming.
To find out more – and to offer to help develop a website – contact lorin.lafave@breckbednar.com
