Sinister web troll snared boy, 14, over sex photos
Threat to reveal them drove teenager to brink of suicide
AN internet troll pushed a schoolboy to consider suicide after threatening to publish explicit pictures of him on Facebook.
Dylan Farnan, 20, forced his young victim to send intimate photos after saying he would upload more than a dozen other pictures to the internet if he did not.
Farnan, of Motherwell, Lanarkshire, used a fake Facebook profile to begin chatting to the boy, who was 14 at the time.
After willingly swapping photos, the boy – who cannot be named for legal reasons – told Farnan he would not send any more and would tell police if he wasn’t left alone.
The web designer ignored the boy’s pleas that he was considering ending his own life – and even taunted him about secretly enjoying his torment. The ordeal lasted from October 2012 until the following August and ended when the boy confided in family and Farnan was arrested.
Farnan admitted causing his victim to participate in sexual activity, sending him sexual messages and taking indecent pictures of children.
At Hamilton Sheriff Court yesterday, he was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.
He was also put on the sex offenders’ register for two years and ordered to be kept under supervision for two years.
Advocate Neil Beardmore, defending, said Farnan was now studying at the University of Westminster in London and offered an apology to his victim.
He said: ‘This gentleman recognises the anguish and distress he caused.
‘He recognises through his self- centred actions that he has affected the life of a
‘Feared friends and family would find out’
young man who may have been curious about his sexuality and was vulnerable. He wants to apologise for his conduct and asks for his forgiveness.’
He added: ‘He is now in a same-sex marriage and this offence was committed three years ago. He has had no contact with the police since and has no previous convictions and there is no reason to suspect he will be involved in any crimes. He has learned his lesson from this.’
Depute fiscal Callum Forsyth said Farnan had used a fake profile to trap his victim before turning on him in December 2012.
He said: ‘The complainer complied with the demands as he feared friends and family would find out he had taken and sent images of himself in sexual poses.
‘The complainer goes on to explain that what he is doing to him could lead to suicide, however he only appears concerned about receiving more pictures.’
Sheriff Thomas Millar said: ‘In this case I have to take into account the comparative ages when the offences were carried out.’
Farnan refused to comment.