A Nigerian man, Hassanbunhussein Abolore Lawal, has been extradited to the US and charged with operating a sextortion scheme that led to the death of a 17-year-old South Carolina teenager, Gavin Guffey. Lawal, 24, allegedly posed as a young woman on social media and convinced Guffey to send compromising photos. After receiving the photos, Lawal threatened to leak them and ruin Guffey’s reputation unless he sent money.
Guffey’s father, South Carolina Republican state Rep. Brandon Guffey, said his son and the perpetrator began chatting on Instagram, and the scammer convinced Gavin to turn on “vanish mode” in their chat, which allows messages to disappear after they are received. The scammer then demanded money from Gavin, and when he replied that he only had $25 in his account, the scammer demanded more.
Gavin died by suicide in July 2022 after falling victim to Lawal’s alleged scheme. After his death, the scammer tracked down Brandon Guffey and Gavin’s teenage cousin on Instagram and began demanding money from them.
Lawal is charged with 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 intent to extort, and aiding and abetting. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison, including a mandatory sentence of 30 years for the charge of child exploitation resulting in death.
The FBI and other law enforcement agencies worked together to investigate the case and extradite Lawal from Nigeria. The indictment represents the culmination of countless hours of dedicated work, said Steve Jensen, special agent in charge of the FBI Columbia Field Office.
“We will not allow predators who target our children to hide behind a keyboard or across the ocean. Today we honor Gavin’s life and continue our fight against sextortion by holding this defendant accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Adair Ford Boroughs for the District of South Carolina.
