July 2021

Twisted graphic designer who terrorised six females online found guilty

A graphic designer has been found guilty of terrorising six females in a harrowing campaign of online abuse.

Shaquille Williams, aged 25, blackmailed one victim by threatening to send private sexual photographs of her to her family and friends.

The 25-year-old vowed to – unless she sent him more images which he tried to direct.

The victim had already been targeted by sadistic blackmailer and paedophile Abdul Hasib Elahi, 26.

Elahi is currently awaiting sentencing after admitting sickening online offences in a separate National Crime Agency investigation.

Abdul Hasib Elahi, 26, admitted a total of 158 offences.

• blackmailed worldwide victims to horrifically abuse themselves, siblings and children;

• sold the footage as ‘box sets’ to other offenders;

• provided ‘master classes’ on the encrypted Telegram app to help paedophiles avoid detection;

• and his victims were as young as eight months old.

He singled out victims who were in debt or too young to legitimately be on the sites and tricked them into sending him naked or partially clothed images of themselves. He also targeted some victims on social media.

He promised payment of thousands of pounds for posed images and sent fake screenshots of money leaving his account in similar transactions to convince victims.

Elahi, of Sparkhill, Birmingham, masqueraded as a businessman or stockbroker on sugar daddy websites and conned victims into sending him sexual images of themselves.

He then blackmailed them into filming themselves performing increasingly degrading acts and sending him the footage.

Elahi posted the footage online where Williams, of Hartness Road, Clifton, Nottingham, acquired some of it.

Today, at Nottingham Crown Court, a jury found Williams guilty of blackmailing the victim between 10 January 2019 and 10 May 2019.

The jury also convicted him of three counts of harassing three women and putting them in fear of violence between 18 April 2019 and 21 May 2019.

Williams was also found guilty of two counts of sending grossly offensive messages to two other women.

Using various social media accounts, university graduate Williams sent the women horrendous abuse including pictures of acid attack victims.

One victim received messages including the name of her home town, a picture of hydrochloric acid and a message featuring her road name.

Williams will be sentenced on 18 August.

Another defendant, Kirsty Nicholls, 35, from Middlesex, who knew Elahi from a sugar daddy website, had previously pleaded guilty to two charges of sexual assault of a child and one of making an indecent photo.

Elahi and Nicholls will be sentenced on September 9 and 10 at Birmingham Crown Court.