Father’s anguish that reveals the true evil of online blackmailers
The most heartbreaking case of our campaign... now cruel ransomware attackers have claimed a life
CRAIG Simpson was last seen alive leaving home in the middle of March this year. The 56-year-old’s body was pulled out of the nearby River Lugg in Herefordshire a week later. Police discovered messages on his mobile phone revealing that he had recently been blackmailed into making Bitcoin payments to stop criminals sharing his private information with family and friends, despite nothing on his phone or computer showing he had ever visited an adult website.
He had been a victim of ‘ransomware’ – a cruel attack by computer criminals who blackmail their victims by threatening to spread lies that they have been watching online porn. The mental torture that may have led to his death is hard to imagine but the agony etched on the face of his loving father Bernard is easier to understand.
The 80-year-old retired company director is in Lanzarote on a much needed break. But it will not help heal the heartbreak of losing his beloved son. At his side is Hazel, his second wife – his first wife (Craig’s mother) died four years ago of cancer. But despite the sunshine and the company of his 79-year-old wife, there is rarely a moment when Bernard is able to shake off the ever present grief.
Bernard says: ‘Something has broken inside of me that can never be fixed. I only share this agony in the hope that others will not suffer the same fate that befell my son.
‘Craig was my eldest son and the rock at the heart of our family. His loss has left us all utterly devastated and also affected hundreds in our community who paid their respects at his funeral. The criminals should be forced to feel the heartache they have caused.’
Police discovered Craig’s car at the Riverside Inn at Aymestrey in North Herefordshire after his wife called them concerned he had not returned home. Officers discovered his mobile phone in the car – and on it were emails showing that someone had been blackmailing him, threatening to expose his alleged adult website visits to close friends and family.
At the inquest held in September, Detective Constable Theresa Wood said: ‘Mr Simpson had been sent an email from an unknown person who made a demand for some money over the internet in Bitcoin.
‘The email stated that if he did not comply and make this payment everybody in his phone contacts would find out what he had been using the internet for.’
Police enquiries indicated that Craig had made two payments for undisclosed amounts and that the demands originated from Iran. There was no way of tracing the criminals.
Craig had been prescribed antidepressants in the months before his death. But the coroner, Mark Bricknell, speaking at the inquest, said: ‘Mr Simpson was a sound, hardworking man of the community. It appears he was blackmailed and this added or caused the stress he was suffering. He may have contemplated suicide – but despite notes being left I am not sufficiently satisfied that was necessarily his intent.’ The coroner recorded an open verdict as he could not be sure that, following heavy snow, Craig did not accidentally fall into the freezing river. But Craig’s father is convinced that the blackmailers were a contributory factor in his death. His eyes well up with tears as he describes the positive energy that the married father of two grown-up daughters shared with everyone he met – and how he is now desperately trying to pay tribute to his son by refusing to be eaten up by hate.
The Shropshire-based grandfather of seven says: ‘These blackmailers may be evil and not care about what they do, but if I hate them then it will only destroy me. Of course, I would like to see the villains brought to justice, but most important of all is that no one else falls victim to their chilling crime.’
Bernard becomes animated as he describes the ‘special bond’ he had with his devoted eldest son – throwing his arms in the air as he expresses the warmth they shared with one another. Craig would contact his father daily. Bernard says: ‘He was the most straightforward and decent man you could ever hope to meet. Never a bad word was said about him by anyone.
‘Craig would always go out of his way to put a smile on your face. When he walked into the room he made you feel better about life. He was such a positive spirit and this makes his death so hard to understand.’
They shared a passion for Blackburn Rovers Football Club, growing up in Lancashire along with his two younger brothers, now aged 55 and 43. Bernard says: ‘He would always ring me after a game and if the team had lost – which was far too often – Craig would tell me to look on the
positive side and that the team would soon go on a good run and results would go their way.’ Craig was also a fan of cars. From the age of eight he was able to identify most makes and models out on the road. Bernard says: ‘His first car was a Triumph Herald. Craig had a real soft spot for classic motors and had an almost encyclopaedic memory for facts about them. My son had everything to live for and it was a dream of his to own a classic car in the future. That will now never happen.’
Bernard’s voice cracks with emotion but he refuses to allow himself to be swallowed up by grief – always smiling and greeting others at the hotel complex where he is staying – and not sharing the terrible secret that he admits has left him crushed. He adds: ‘I talk to him now all the time. It is the only way I can cope. Without Hazel pushing me I think it would be impossible to keep carrying on.’
As well as a loving family, Craig also had a successful career as a sales and marketing manager, though it meant spending several weeks at a time away from home on the road in Europe.
Bernard admits: ‘He was hard working but part of me wonders if he sometimes pushed himself too much – being so busy can lead to exhaustion and his mind could have been fragile and made him ill.’
He says that his son had recently been suffering from tinnitus – ringing in the ears – though he never wanted to bother anyone else about it. He says: ‘The day before his death he told me he was off to see the doctor – but there was nothing to worry about. I said I would call the next day to see how he got on. But we never spoke again.’
On the verge of tears he gets up to leave. But not without a final word about those who perpetrate ‘ransomware’ threats on innocent people like Craig.
‘These people need to be stopped in their tracks,’ he says. ‘They are causing untold misery. Maybe your newspaper’s highlighting of this new computer scourge will prevent others from falling victim. I really do hope so.’
His loss has left us devastated... the criminals who did this should be made to feel my heartache