A young woman blackmailed men who were using sugar daddy websites out of hundreds of pounds after threatening to tell their wives and girlfriends what they’d been up to.
Tiffany Anderson extorted almost £1,300 from four men in the space of a year, with one victim stumping up around £600 for fear his girlfriend would find out he had joined the adults-only site.
The 23-year-old, from Aberdeen, created fake profiles on Secretbenefits.com and Seeking.com before encouraging those who made contact to swap mobile phone numbers.
She would then offer the men videos and photos of a sexual nature and, if they accepted, use their messages against them to extort money.
Anderson sent screenshots of their friends and family’s Facebook pages along with a threat: “Don’t even think about blocking me.”
‘You shouldn’t be cheating on your wife’
In July 2019 she created a fake profile on Secret Benefits – which calls itself “a dating site for generous men and attractive women” – to target one married man, who sent her £30 in exchange for photos of a sexual nature.
Once the cash was received Anderson messaged her victim, warning he “shouldn’t be cheating on his wife” and demand £200 to stop her from sharing their intimate messages and conversations with his Facebook friends.
The man paid a total of £250 before blocking her from contacting him on WhatsApp.
On a second occasion, in December 2019, she sent messages of a similar nature to a user of sugar daddy website Seeking.com.
This time her offer to send intimate videos was refused – but the man stated he would rather meet in person and suggesting they carry out a sexual act.
Anderson then sent him a screenshot of that message back to him, followed by screenshots of his Facebook page and a demand for £100.
Blackmailed less than an hour after joining website
Fiscal depute Dylan Middleton told Aberdeen Sheriff Court: “Reluctantly, the complainer sent the £100 with the reference ‘purchase’ to the account. However, further threats followed and the accused demanded a further £100 be paid.”
The man obliged, stumping up £200 in total, before reporting matters to the police.
On a third occasion, that same month, Anderson’s victim had been a member of the Seeking site for less than an hour before he found himself being blackmailed.
She sent him a message containing her number, suggesting it was “easier to converse” that way.
Mr Middleton said: “The complainer received a message through WhatsApp from the accused advertising videos for sale.
“He began questioning his actions and declined the offer.”
However, true to form, screenshots of his friends’ and girlfriend’s Facebook pages followed, as well as a demand for £200.
Victim paid her around £600
He blocked her and hoped that would be the end of it, but later that day received further messages from a different phone number requesting cash in return for her keeping quiet.
“He continued to receive further regular demands for payment. He reluctantly continued to send money,” Mr Middleton added.
The man eventually forked out around £600.
Anderson’s fourth victim was duped in a similar way on June 18 last year.
He agreed to chat through WhatsApp but declined her offer of sexual photos. In this instance, the conversations were “generic” and the man also declined an offer to meet in person.
However, he still paid up £130 via Paypal after Anderson sent a message stating “How about I send all your friends and family all your messages and your Seeking page?
“I am sure you don’t want the humiliation and embarrassment of that … and don’t even think about blocking me.”
Blackmailer is ‘very vulnerable’
Anderson’s defence agent Alex Burn said his client had a “troubled background” and grew up without a “proper parental upbringing”. He said she “very much regrets” her involvement in the scheme.
“Clearly these are serious matters but there are some positive changes in her life,” he added. “She is a very vulnerable individual.”
Sheriff William Summers said it was “impossible not to feel some sympathy towards her” but that it was “not unusual” to punish crimes like this with a prison sentence.
He said: “These are serious charges involving a clear element of planning and seemingly meticulous execution. In the course of this venture, you extorted hundreds of pounds from four victims.”
Noting her limited previous convictions Sheriff Summers sentenced Anderson, of the Spital, Aberdeen, to 18 months of supervision, 160 hours of unpaid work and a three-month nighttime curfew.
