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He lost his son to suicide after a ‘sextortion’ scam. The alleged scammer was just extradited to the US

<i>Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call

By Faith Karimi, CNN

(CNN) — South Carolina Rep. Brandon Guffey was overwhelmed with rage when he first saw the man he believes caused his son’s suicide.

The suspect was extradited from Nigeria to the US over the weekend on charges that he targeted 17-year-old Gavin Guffey in a sexual extortion, or “sextortion” scheme, that led to the teen’s death.

The Nigerian appeared in court in Columbia, South Carolina, on Monday, where Brandon Guffey laid eyes on him after more than two years of fighting for justice for his son.

“Rage is the best way to describe how I felt,” Guffey told CNN. “I think I cracked molars just gritting my teeth so hard.”

The man, Hassanbunhussein Abolore Lawal, 24, did not make eye contact with him, Guffey said. Lawal kept his head bowed and appeared to avoid looking in his family’s direction, he said.

As part of a sextortion scheme, Lawal allegedly masqueraded as a young woman on social media and sent Gavin nude photos. He asked for similar images of himself, and once Gavin shared the photos, the suspect threatened to publicize them if he didn’t pay, the Justice Department said.

He’s pleaded not guilty to charges of child exploitation resulting in death, distribution of child sexual abuse material, coercion and enticement of a minor, cyberstalking, interstate threats with intent to extort and aiding/abetting, according to court records.

At Monday’s hearing Guffey wore a black T-shirt with the love symbol <3. It represents the last text message Gavin sent loved ones on July 27, 2022, minutes before he shot himself in a bathroom at the family home in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

“I’m a roller coaster of emotions right now. I served in the house with a representative who lost his mother and sister in the Dylann Roof shootings down in Charleston. And those families were able to look at Dylann Roof and say, we forgive you,’” Guffey said.

“I want to ask … ‘how do you have forgiveness in your heart?’ Because I just don’t have it. I have anger and vengeance. And every time I see my family’s pain over this, it just infuriates me more.”

The scammer threatened other family members after Gavin Guffey’s death

The FBI arrested Lawal in Lagos last week following an extradition hearing. CNN has reached out to his court-appointed attorney for comment.

Guffey had to sign paperwork confirming he would not push for the death penalty to ensure that the Nigerian government approved the extradition, he said.

Last week, he was shocked to get a call from federal investigators notifying him that the extradition had been approved and they were on their way to pick up Lawal. Investigators confirmed his arrival in Columbia on Saturday.

“It was a surprise. I knew that they had been working on the process, but extradition was not something that commonly happens with Nigeria,” Guffey said. “There was still that anticipation and fear until his feet were actually on US soil.”

At a press conference, investigators declined to provide details on how they tracked the suspect to Nigeria or whether there were other suspects involved. Some of the court documents in the case are sealed.

“This investigation and extradition are the result of tremendous law enforcement coordination both in the United States and Nigeria,” said Adair Ford Boroughs, US Attorney for the District of South Carolina. “We will not allow predators who target our children to hide behind a keyboard or across the ocean.”

Lawal faces up to life in prison, while the charge of child exploitation resulting in death alone carries a mandatory 30-year sentence. A court may also order he pay restitution for losses incurred by the Guffey family because of the scheme.

Guffey said the scammer’s extortion attempts continued even after his son’s death. Anyone with the last name Guffey among Gavin’s Instagram followers started getting messages demanding money, he said. About two weeks after his son’s funeral, Guffey said he received a private Instagram message with a laughing emoji. Guffey and his younger son also got messages demanding money in exchange for not releasing Gavin’s nude photos.

Guffey shared the messages with federal investigators, and they took control of the social media accounts and began communicating with the scammer — which eventually helped them learn his identity, he said.

“They were able to pick up the conversation as agents to where he thought that he was talking to my 16-year-old. They were able to track him down, I think through that conversation and his continued efforts of trying to extort me as well,” he said.

“This was a multifaceted operation. It wasn’t just one group. It started with our York County Sheriff’s Department, along with our South Carolina law enforcement division, tying in with FBI and Homeland Security.”

Sextortion scams targeting kids have increased in recent years, the FBI says

The FBI has warned that sexual extortion schemes are increasingly targeting underage boys and leading to an alarming increase in suicides nationwide.

At the time of his son’s death, Guffey was running for state representative. After he was elected, he introduced a bill that criminalizes the type of scam that led to his son’s death.

In 2023 South Carolina passed “Gavin’s Law,” which is named after his son and makes sextortion of minors and vulnerable people an aggravated felony. It also requires schools in the state to teach students about the dangers of sextortion and how to identify potential scammers.

“Awareness really is 90% of the battle,” Guffey said. “We can talk until we are blue in the face, but I don’t care what type of parent you are, it’s very difficult to protect your children from everything.”

Guffey has also sued Meta, Instagram’s parent company, for wrongful death, gross negligence and other claims, saying it does not do enough to protect children like Gavin from online predators.

A Meta spokesperson told CNN last year that teen safety is a big priority for the company and that it offers dozens of resources to help its young users stay safe. Guffey’s lawsuit against the company is still pending.

Guffey also is working with Cyber Dive, a company that has created a children’s smartphone with a nudity detection feature that shuts down the phone’s camera if male or female genitalia is detected.

“The phone … allows parents to see every single action that their child has taken on social media, regardless of what app they’re on,” said Jeff Gottfurcht, CEO of Cyber Dive. “Anything the child does using that phone is sent in real time to a parent dashboard where parents get to see it.”

Guffey said he wants to make sure no other parent suffers the same loss.

“My mission in life, regardless of politics or anything else, is to protect kids until the day that I die,” he said.

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