By Our Reporter
A Nigerian man, Hassanbunhussein Abolore Lawal, 24, from Osun state in Nigeria has been put behind bars in South Carolina United States of America for a sextortion scam of a teenager, who eventually took his life.
Lawal was picked up from Lagos and extradited to the United States to face charges of sextortion scheme, says United States Attorney Adair Ford Boroughs and federal, state, and law enforcement on Monday.
Lawal is believed to be responsible for Rock Hill resident, Gavin Guffey, 17, who two years ago, precisely in July 2022, lost his life to suicide after falling victim to a sextortion scheme reportedly created by Lawal.
According to authorities, Lawal pretended to be a young woman on social media and coerced Guffy to send nude photos. Lawal threatened to ruin Guffey’s reputation by releasing the images unless the minor sent money.
Lawal is charged with the following:
Child exploitation resulting in death.
Production and distribution of child sexual abuse material
Coercion and enticement of a minor
Cyberstalking resulting in death
Interstate threats with the internet to extort
Aiding/ abetting
Lawal was also accused of extending his cyberstalking and extortion schemes to Guffey’s family, long after Guffey had taken his life. Consequently, Lawal faces up to 30 years in jail or life imprisonment. A prison sentence is mandatory for several of his charges and the child exploitation resulting in death charge alone requires a minimum 30-year sentence. Lawal will also be forced to pay any restitution the court orders to the Guffey family.
A grand jury returned an indictment in Oct. 2023. With the help of Nigerian law enforcement, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents out of the Columbia, S.C., office took custody of Lawal on Jan. 24, 2025, in Lagos, Nigeria.
With additional reports from WSOCTV.com