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Male Sextortion Victim: Blackmailers Tricked Me Into Exposing Myself On Skype

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A man who was propositioned by a “stunning blonde” on webcam couldn’t believe his luck – until he discovered he was part of a ‘sextortion’ scam.

John Pearn, 62, was tricked into exposing himself online after a mysterious woman added him on Facebook.

Within minutes he was being threatened with blackmail by people who said they would post the images on the web unless he handed over cash.

But rather than bow to their demands, the carpenter bravely refused.

After calling the police, he has now gone public to warn others about similar scams – although admits his mates find it “hilarious”.

Pearn, from Lipson, Devon, said: “I saw someone wanting to be my friend on Facebook a couple of weeks ago who I didn’t know.

"I’d been in hospital for ten days – I thought it was heart problems but it turned out to be a hiatus hernia.

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One of the blackmail messages (SWNS)

"I was in a mate’s office and logged on and there were three friend requests. I didn’t know them and pressed yes on one by accident.

"Half an hour later I got a private message saying thank you and this woman called Marie Laverly started chatting to me.

"She asked if I had Skype and asked me to go on that.”

Moments later ‘Marie’ was urging him to get on his camera.

John said: “I’d spent nearly two weeks in hospital and I was bored ****less.

"She was asking if I wanted to see her on camera, so I said yes. The next thing there’s this woman stripping off, a stunning blonde doing stuff to herself.”

She repeatedly asked Jon to return the favour – so, as he puts it: “I flashed her my d***.“

Moments later, she was threatening to send images of him to his friends, family and workmates – and began to name his nieces and nephews on Facebook.

She wrote: "Tell me how much you can pay for your video."

But Pearn was having none of it – instead copying the threats and calling police.

He said: "I told her ‘I think you’ve picked on the wrong person here – you should go and pick on someone who cares.”

Marie then began calling him on Skype, claiming he had committed a crime and faced 25 years in prison.

She also claimed she had put it on his Facebook page and announced a blackmail figure of £100, getting more desperate.

Marie then conceded that she was not a woman at all – instead a man – and tried one last roll of the dice, claiming the video was in possession of the police. But Pearn wasn’t phased.

He said: "Fortunately, I don’t give a ****. They picked on the wrong person because I just didn’t care.

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The blackmailer repeatedly rang Pearn (SWNS)

"Most of my mates think it’s hilarious and say 'that’s typical of you’.

“I’m not doing this [going public] for me, I’m doing this for people who would be upset and afraid and pay. I don’t want them to do the same thing to other people.”

Helen Batten of Plymouth CID said she has investigated a number of the local cases and recently gathered statistics which show the crime is on the rise.

She said: "This crime affects both male and female victims with some extremely embarrassed about how gullible they have been.

"Many were concerned about the impact it would have on their relationships, family and work colleagues should the videos have been posted on their Facebook pages.

"The only way to avoid becoming a victim is to keep your clothes on when on video chat sessions.”