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UK police via AFP - Getty Images
Megan Stammers and Jeremy Forrest appear in this composite image supplied by police in the U.K.
An English man has been arrested on suspicion of child abduction after he was found in France with a 15-year-old high school student, police said Friday.
A statement on the Sussex Police website said Megan Stammers and Jeremy Forrest, a 30-year-old math teacher, were found “safe and well” at 1:15 p.m. local time in France (7:15 a.m. ET).
“Mr Forrest has been arrested on suspicion of child abduction and Megan has been taken into protection,” the statement said. “Their families have been informed and arrangements will now be made for Megan and Jeremy's safe return.”
In an interview with ITV News, Martin Stammers said he was “thrilled, delighted, overjoyed.”
“The most amazing thing at the moment,” he said, touching his chest, “is the joy in here that she’s safe and well … you cannot describe the relief.”
Police: UK teen thought to have run away to France with her math teacher
Stammers praised police and also people using social media sites to raise awareness about his daughter.
Megan’s sister Brooke Stammers expressed her joy at the news in several messages on Twitter.
“Absolutely on top of the world of the world right now, to know our Megan is safe and sound! Love you so much my beautiful sister xxxxxx,” she said in one.
“All our hope and faith came through so strong and our positivity stuck out!” she added.
Before they were found, Forrest’s father Jim had made an emotional appeal for Forrest or Megan to get in touch, ITV News reported.
“There are a lot of people back home who are desperate to hear from you. All I’m asking is for one of you to make a call or send an email to let us know that you are both safe,” he said. “We are all … we are all here for you both. We just need to hear from you.”
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Leave a Comment:
Where all the posts giving the teacher a big thumbs up? Oh wait, that only happens when female teachers take advantage of their students. Carry on with the double standards.
That's the one double standard I'll accept.
Not that it makes it any more acceptable or legal, but my guess is that she went with him willingly. This guy is a pervert who took advantage of his position as a teacher to seduce an under age girl and he deserves to be prosecuted for it. I am surprised that France even detained him given that the age of consent in France is 15. In the UK the age of consent is 16 except in the case where one person is in a position of trust or authority over the other (a teacher falls into this category) where the age of consent is 18. I guess France is honoring the fact that these two are both Brits and that the relationship initiated in the UK where it is illegal.
@JS in SD, France's sex laws are probably irrelevant here unless they also wanted to charge him with an offense: Simply, he is a fugitive from justice wanted on a warrant from another EU nation.
@Kevin C - It is not unusual for a country to deny an extradition request when the offense charged is not considered a crime in the country to person is in, particularly when it is a non-violent offense. Requests are also denied when the country does not agree with the potential punishment for the crime. For example, Canada will not extradite anyone to the US if the person is facing the death penalty. The US has been forced in the past to agree to waive the death penalty to get murderers extradited from Canada.
@JS in SD: His arrest probably has more to do with abduction than with statutory rape.
@JS in SD, not extraditing due to the death penalty, and for this crime are miles apart, example-wise. In addition, they have the rules of the EU to live by since they are both members. I cannot see there ever being such a conflict between these two nations.
The big difference, Flat, is that boys don't get pregnant.
What a pretty girl and what a FREAKY looking guy.
I don't know where to go with this.
Yes, I do.
I'd hug my little girl, ground her for life and carve a bucketload of crosses in that turkeys body until the cows came home.
just one dad's opinion
awhhh true love
Cassandra
You're absolutely right about boys not getting pregnant. They just learn from their adult female abusers that it's OK and even enjoyable for an adult and child to have sex. So when the boys grow up... Ditto for girls who are sexually abused by adult females.
Carry on with the double standard if it makes you happy.
Hee Haw
I think this double standard comes (in part) from the fact that we, as a culture, consider female virginity as being valuable, but male virginity isn't (we all know the standard of a girl who sleeps around is a ho, while a male who does the same is praised for being a player). Possibly this comes from the fact that there is a "tell" for women, but not for men, combined with the view (rightly or wrongly) that for women, losing their virginity is physically painful (both of which are not true for every female). So for the case of a male teacher, female student, many view that as he has taken something valuable from her, and has potentially caused her pain (similarly for a male teacher and a male student). Meanwhile, the female teacher "hasn't taken anything of value" from her male student.
I don't think this is right-it should be the same regardless of the genders of the people involved-just speculating as to why this view is prevalent (in addition to what Cassandra has pointed out-I agree that may play a role as well).
Just happy she is safe.
Dartatak: I'm w/you brother! I'm the father of a Beutiful 10 year old girl, and yes I'd do the same thing as you, except a little more extreme after hugs & kisses. As for him? Believe me, that punk would be begging to die hours before I allowed that to happen!!! You learn things!
the only double standards that pisses me off are that these people-age 30 and 15 were raidsed in a sex saturated society- they have heard nothing but "do it any time any where with any one or thing" from the moment they were born- they have seen graphic sex situations like this acted out on tv, you tube and and never told it was wrong.
then when they act out how they were raised to act the BLAMMMMOOOO!!! society thinks they must be punished.
What if this had been a gay teacher and gay kid....they have been firghting for their rights for years...would the teacher have been arrested because they were only doing what they were born to do?
I say, unless you put sex back in the bedroom between man and wife where it belongs and clean up the media, then society has no right to punish them. They are only doing what they learned was ok to do.
do not punish the pig for laying in the mud when it was never told it was wrong
or beat the dog for eating its own vomit!!!!
And what about the female teacher getting pregnant? What about STDs? What about negative mental consequences which have been documented even with males or the fact that teachers behaving that way is extremely unprofessional and inappropriate? All adult on minor sex is wrong, quit trying to justify it.
esbe... do you believe in the illuminati?
Texas just sent a 30 year old female teacher to jail for five years for having orgies with 18 and 19 year old male students.
Think about this: all were old enough to join the ARMY
and vote
Is this what they would call a "feeled trip"?
Lmao ^^^^ , but really, thats what it is, they were just making an example out of her they really dont care too much about what ever wrong might have been committed...they only care about enforcing their policies...@ old fat guy-1144960
What's with the cross on this guy's forehead and why was he allowed to be a teacher? This guy's picture should be in the dictionary right next to the word "pedophile."
Maybe he got his picture taken on Ash Wednesday? He is obviously a good, god fearing Catholic.
Except he isn't a pedophile. The correct term would be Ephebophile, or Ephebophilia, if he has more of an attraction towards mid to late teenagers over people his own age.
Pedophiles are attracted to pre-teens or younger.
It's good to know the difference. Most guys who LOVE looking at Playboy issues that feature 18-19 yr olds and prefeer them over women their own age, are actually displaying a key trait in being an Ephobophiliac.
Maybe it's Ash Wedesday. Oh, it's Friday & September! What a weirdo! I'm sure he was very compassionate to this young girl. Dad's tell your little girls how pretty & loveable they are. It's a big preventative weapon against the onslaught of a young man's attentions. Young girls will hold out when the parents love their girls & state their expectations & concerns about sex outside of marriage. Pvert is greatest in single head of household families with a female as the head od the house. The poverty level is 6.8% for married couples with children. This is an American stat. Factors are marriage & both parents for wealth.
So.................... what's the real story here?
.
Creepy guy. Should never have been allowed in a classroom.
What a troll! eww. Isn't 15 legal though in Europe?
His arrest probably has more to do with abduction than with statutory rape.
France is 13, remember the little girls that Roman Polanski harbors?
His pic horrifyingly resembles James Holmes...
I was thinking the SAME THING!!!
This young girls parents better keep a closer eye on her, at that age girls are very gullible to what ever a guy will say to them, this is far from over between the two, time to bulk up dad and get ready to kick some serious a$%.
Can't believe there are still adults who run off with teens as they always get caught. The adult goes to jail for a long time while the teen gets counceling and moves on with her/his life forgetting all about their former lover. Pitiful
Not to play devils advocate but I have a feeling that the girl willingly went with him and was not made to do anything she did not want to. I realize everyone wants girls to be sweet and innocent but its very possible she was a willing participant in this relationship. Is it wrong he is hanging out with a 15 yr old girl yes but its also wrong that she may have been a willing participant. Girls are not as gullible as you think they are and are just as into older men as the men are into them.
I really dont think they are worrying about the age or sexual part of the two. The story only talks about abduction, which im sure she went with him to. Im sure the parents know they are a couple and probably dont mind they just want to know were they both are... I think the media made more out of it then the parents did...
dmathews3: If what you posted is true, then daddy needs an a$$whoopin!!! Or else he needs to grow a pair of stones, so he has the guts to either kick the guys butt or shoot his funky a$$!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You never have been to Thailand where 20 and 30 year old girls are looking for husbands in their 60s and 70s.
Everyone is going on assuming "bad" things happened, but all this story says is that they have been found. This story says nothing of what went on between them or even what the girl thinks of this whole situation.
Who gives a damn about whether an underage girl wanted sexual relations with an adult? She lacks capacity to consent. It might as well have been an orderly having fun with a patient under anesthesia
This story will soon be forgotten also, I can remember not too far back Roman Polanski! Either this teacher had a romantic relationship with her or he kidnapped which one is not clear right now. As you can see they think very differently in Europe in general because they think Roman Polanski done no wrong. That's all for me.
What a waste of time, there's real criminals out there...
@ Jim TROLL ALERT
Whatever that means ?
From what I've heard and read over here in the U.K. media she did go with him willingly and this had been going on for a short while.....he was being investigated and questioned about it and then they both took off to France....he was married also but haven't heard too much about his wife.
Apparently, after a long marriage--he then discovered his wife was still a man and it was so upsetting that he ran away to France
Girl probably has a father figure complex and likes older men.
What a scewed up World we live in these days..smh
What a little slut!!! Now the teacher will get nailed, but mommy and daddy should slap a chastity belt on their little darling until she learns to keep her knickers up.
Because this was going on for a long time, both the man and the girl are both in the wrong, BUT the man should have known better and kept it zipped.
Oh Please! She's not a beauty queen by anyone's standards so I can see why she'd run off with 'ash face'. They both look very un-photogenic. But to think she was kidnapped is a big leap IMHO. She was probably enjoying being chased by an adult and he was probably getting his first taste of pie. He's off to the whoscow now for a good 15 to 20 years where he'll meet some young boy that's barely legal and he'll share a cell with him next.
It was a nice ride for the teacher while it lasted. Unfortunately they were not too careful to hide themselves from French police and the public.
Isn't the age of consent in Britain 16? The same age they let them have hard cider and mead?
This guy is a pervert and the girl is obviously lucky to have been found alive.
What is happening! My Grandmother's were both married young and my grandfathers were 20+ years. My grandmothers knew what they were doing and had no problem being with older men...my brother was 16 when he married his 14 year old girlfriend in Idaho...they had 3 children and were married for over 10 years. All the girls I knew at 11-12 were with guys (I acted like a boy so I did not date until later) they all should have married young because instead the aborted babies or just kept sleeping around with other partners...so what do we want to do? stop these relationships and watch the girl struggle along and never settle with one person and teach men not to be serious about the relationship and just keep sleeping around with no attachments or set them up to serve many years in a prison just to get raped by real "predator" men? What are we thinking!!!!! I am confused by all the comments because we as a society set young people up to think constantly about sex and then we punish them when they go in that direction. Soon I believe God will bring an end to all the madness or we will implode as a society much like Rome!!!
And for what I've read, she was a willing participant in all, so if this teacher gets jailed I hope is not for too long. As she should be also reprimanded
Yes, both were wrong, BUT as the adult, the man should have kept it zipped.
And keep close and dear to the heart, the immortal words of the Obama:
"The future must not belong to the those who slander the prophet of Islam"
President Obama address to the United Nations. Sep 25, 2012
and he's over 15. Tisk tisk. Should know better.
have to agree
he is very freaky looking
intellegent donkey- your comment about cassadra
not a necessary comment
so hee haw yourself
She's cute...maybe I'll become a teacher ...J/K.... the "relationship" these two had has been going on for 8 months...they are both very good at hiding things from friends, parents and co-workers although they didn't appear to be hiding their relationship when they left the UK.... both of them need counseling BIG TIME !!
Cassandra:
You typed that the difference is that boys don't get pregnant.
Well, isn't that all the more reason why a grown woman who has relations with a young boy should be prosecuted? She should know better. Why make a young boy a father when he is not ready to be one? At least the girl can have an abortion if she is not ready to be a mother.
But if a grown woman becomes pregnant with a young boy's child, is she going to make the 15-year-old pay for child support when he is still in school? Some states in the U.S. have said yes and his parents wind up paying for it in many cases.
I don't think pregnancy justifies poor choices by women.
Another one who feels it's okay for a girl to go through the psychological trauma of having an abortion and the feelings of guilt afterwards. The wondering of what the baby would have looked like. The dangers of infection and unstoppable hemorrhaging. Watch your children and teach them to wait till their adults. Girls shouldn't have to go through pregnancy or abortion while they are still children.