Anonymous on Rehtaeh Parsons: We couldn't turn away a request for justice

A member of the hacker collective explains why they got involved in the Canada rape case, and what's coming next

Published April 12, 2013 5:07PM (EDT)

Rehtaeh Parsons
Rehtaeh Parsons

In a Friday interview, an organizer of #OpJustice4Rehtaeh said that hacker collective Anonymous got involved in the Rehtaeh Parsons rape case after people in Nova Scotia asked for their help, explaining: "Could you turn them away?”

As the Daily Beast reports, Anonymous has confirmed the identities of two of the four alleged suspects in the Canada rape case, but has no plans to move forward until they can verify their information:

Anonymous got involved because people in Nova Scotia “are coming to us and asking for help. Could you turn them away?” [Anonymous source] dbcoopa says. They quickly confirmed, via pictures and the multitude of reports coming in from “several sources near Halifax,” the identity of two of the suspects. One of them is widely known in Cole Harbour, dbcoopa says, “because he is easily recognizable in a photograph showing him raping the victim while she is visibly ill… why the RCMP decided these photographs aren’t evidence of rape is beyond us.”

Dbcoopa declined to say who is providing Anonymous information, but he did say the hackers have been told the rape took place on the two suspects’ property. As that’s “unconfirmed,” though, it isn’t part of what the hackers are threatening to release.

As for the other two boys, “all we have is hearsay,” dbcoopa tells The Daily Beast. “We won’t be moving forward with unverified information.”

The collective is waiting to release any names, but, as dbcoopa told the Daily Beast: “We’ve received the same list of names from dozens of people already. It’s only a matter of time before they are doxed [released].”


By Katie McDonough

Katie McDonough is Salon's politics writer, focusing on gender, sexuality and reproductive justice. Follow her on Twitter @kmcdonovgh or email her at kmcdonough@salon.com.

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Anonymous Rape Rehtaeh Parsons Sexual Assault