This story discusses suicide. In the event you or somebody you recognize is having ideas of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Disaster Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
A Nigerian man has been extradited to the U.S. after being indicted for allegedly working a sextortion scheme that led to a South Carolina teenager’s demise.
The U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace for the District of South Carolina mentioned in a press launch that 24-year-old Hassanbunhussein Abolore Lawal of Osun State, Nigeria, has been indicted on costs of: youngster exploitation leading to demise; the manufacturing and distribution of kid sexual abuse materials; coercion and enticement of a minor; cyberstalking leading to demise; interstate threats with intent to extort; and aiding and abetting.
The costs stem from an investigation into the demise of 17-year-old Gavin Guffey of Rock Hill, South Carolina, who died by suicide in July 2022 after falling sufferer to Lawal’s alleged scheme.
Brandon Guffey, proper, has been exposing the hazards of sextortion after his son, Gavin, second from proper, died by suicide final yr. (Brandon Guffey)
Lawal, the lawyer’s workplace mentioned, posed as a younger lady on social media and satisfied the teenager to ship compromising pictures. After {the teenager} despatched the pictures, Lawal is accused of sending harassing messages to him, threatening to leak the pictures and wreck his status until the teenager despatched him cash.
Lawal is accused of later doing the identical to members of Guffey’s household.
“We will not allow predators who target our children to hide behind a keyboard or across the ocean. Today we honor Gavin’s life and continue our fight against sextortion by holding this defendant accountable,” mentioned U.S. Lawyer Adair Ford Boroughs for the District of South Carolina. “This investigation and extradition are the result of tremendous law enforcement coordination both in the United States and Nigeria.”
The boy’s father, South Carolina Republican state Rep. Brandon Guffey, instructed Fox Information Digital final yr that his son and the perpetrator started chatting on Instagram, the social media app owned by Fb’s father or mother firm, Meta.
The variety of reviews involving sextortion tricks to the Nationwide Heart for Lacking and Exploited Kids greater than doubled between 2019 and 2021. In 2022, 79% of offenders have been searching for cash from victims. (Brandon Guffey)
That individual satisfied Gavin to activate “vanish mode” of their Instagram chat, which permits messages to vanish after they’re obtained.
“And then they shared photos,” Guffey instructed Fox Information Digital.
After exchanging pictures, that individual demanded cash from Gavin. He replied that he solely had $25 in his account, which Guffey mentioned was not true, and despatched $25. The scammer demanded extra.
“And he even said that I’m sitting in my room with a gun. If these pictures go out, I’m going to end it right now,” the state lawmaker defined. “I don’t know if any of the pictures were shared.”
WARNING SIGNS OF SUICIDE: WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT PREVENTION, RED FLAGS AND HOW TO DEAL WITH THE ISSUE
Gavin Guffey, 17, died by suicide in 2022 after turning into the sufferer of a sextortion plot on Instagram. (Brandon Guffey)
Gavin, who had simply graduated from highschool that spring and had a ardour for artwork and music, shot himself that night.
After his demise, the scammer he met on Instagram tracked down Brandon Guffey and Gavin’s teenage cousin on Instagram and started demanding cash from them.
“This indictment represents the culmination of countless hours of dedicated work done by our investigators both here and abroad,” mentioned Steve Jensen, particular agent in control of the FBI Columbia Discipline Workplace. “The defendant’s alleged actions are reprehensible resulting in the tragic loss of a young man’s life. We remain steadfast in our commitment to holding criminals accountable, especially those who target our children and endanger their lives, no matter where they are.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
If convicted, Lawal faces as much as life in jail. The cost of youngster exploitation leading to demise carries a compulsory sentence of 30 years in jail.
Lawal might additionally face necessary restitution by which the courtroom might order him to pay for losses incurred by the household because of his alleged scheme.
Fox Information Digital’s Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
