Nigerian man extradited to U.S. for alleged sextortion of South Carolina teen who died by suicide

A Nigerian man was extradited to the U.S. after he was indicted in reference to the sextortion of a South Carolina teen who died by suicide, the Justice Division stated Monday.

Hassanbunhussein Abolore Lawal, 24, allegedly posed as a younger lady on social media and bought 17-year-old Gavin Guffey to ship him “compromising pictures,” the Justice Division stated. Lawal then allegedly threatened to wreck Guffey’s popularity by leaking the pictures until he despatched Lawal cash, the Justice Division stated. 

Guffey, the son of South Carolina state Rep. Brandon Guffey, died by suicide in 2022. 

Lawal was indicted in October 2023 on costs of kid exploitation leading to loss of life, distribution of kid pornography, coercion and enticement of a minor to interact in sexual exercise, cyberstalking leading to loss of life and tried extortion.

“We is not going to permit predators who goal our youngsters to cover behind a keyboard or throughout the ocean. At this time we honor Gavin’s life and proceed our battle in opposition to sextortion by holding this defendant accountable,” U.S. Legal professional Adair Ford Boroughs for the District of South Carolina stated in a statement. 

Lawal faces as much as life in jail and necessary restitution, the place the court docket could order him to pay for losses incurred by the household resulting from his scheme.

After Guffey’s loss of life, Brandon Guffey sponsored a invoice often known as Gavin’s Law, which made sexual extortion “a felony offense and an aggravated felony if the sufferer is a minor, susceptible grownup, or if the sufferer suffers bodily damage or loss of life straight associated to the crime.” South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster signed the bill into regulation in August 2023.

Social media large Meta warned in July that sexual extortion scams are on the rise, with criminals from Nigeria incessantly focusing on grownup males within the U.S. Meta stated it had eliminated about 63,000 accounts from Nigeria that had been making an attempt to focus on folks with monetary sextortion scams. 

In the event you or somebody is in emotional misery or a suicidal disaster, you’ll be able to attain the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. You too can chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline here.

For extra details about mental health care resources and support, The Nationwide Alliance on Psychological Sickness HelpLine might be reached Monday by way of Friday, 10 a.m.–10 p.m. ET, at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or electronic mail info@nami.org.