Nigerian man indicted in sextortion case involving death of SC lawmaker’s son
A Nigerian man was arraigned Monday morning in federal court in Columbia on charges that involved the sexual extortion and suicide of 17-year-old Gavin Guffey, son of a York County state legislator.
Federal authorities indicted Hassanbunhussein Abolore Lawal, 24, who was extradited from Lagos, Nigeria, on Saturday after the FBI took him into custody. He pled not guilty and was ordered held without bond.
Lawal, who told the judge he speaks English, faces life in prison because Guffey took his own life after threats of exposure from Lawal caused great emotional distress, according to prosecutors and court documents.
“The facts of this case are every parent’s worst nightmare,” U.S. Magistrate Judge Shiva V. Hodges said in court during a 47-minute hearing Monday in Columbia’s downtown federal courthouse. Lawal, a short, slim man, wore an orange jumpsuit, handcuffs, a waist chain and ankle chains.
Sexual extortion, commonly known as “sextortion,” is the act of blackmailing someone using sexually explicit images or videos. Penalties are more severe if the victim is a minor, as was Gavin Guffey.
There is at least one other defendant in the case who has not yet been arrested. Their name was not released to the public Monday.
Gavin Guffey, a son of state Rep. Brandon Guffey, died by suicide on July 27, 2022, after the extortion attempt.
Brutal threats
The extortion attempt included threats of exposure of photos that would not only hurt Gavin but also purportedly would “end his father’s career,” said federal prosecutor Elliott Daniels during Monday’s hearing.
Lawal posed as a young woman on Instagram and got Gavin to send him compromising photos, Daniels said. Then Lawal sent harassing messages to the teen threatening to leak the photos on social media and ruin his reputation unless the teen sent him money, Daniels told the judge.
Gavin Guffey paid Lawal $25, but Lawal demanded more and continued to extort Gavin, court documents show.
Gavin pleaded with Laval to stop and told him he was sitting “with a gun in my lap,” Daniels said at the hearing.
But Lawal showed no mercy and told Gavin, “My fellow guys here said that amount is too small and we have no choice but to ruin your life,” according to court records.
Gavin Guffey took his own life later that night, Daniels said.
York County Sheriff Tony Breeden said during a news conference after the court hearing that deputies with the sheriff’s office cybercrimes unit worked the case with federal officials since 2022. Breeden has known Guffey and his family for almost three decades.
“We have drawn a battle line in the sand in the battle between good and evil,” concerning child safety, Breeden said. “We will hunt somebody down to the ends of the Earth.”
Even after Gavin Guffey killed himself, Lawal tried to extort members of Guffey’s family, including his father, by sending family explicit photos and attempting to extort them as well, court documents show. That went on into the middle of August.
“He (Lawal) said he was going to ruin Brandon Guffey’s political career,” Daniels said.
The investigation in both the US and Nigeria
Daniels also said in court that Lawal’s cellphone contained the names of 10 other alleged sextortion victims, six of whom were minors.
Court documents show Nigerian authorities located Lawal in August 2023 and obtained a confession from him and information from three of his cellphones.
Law enforcement identified Lawal through online police work. A federal grand jury indicted him under a sealed indictment in October 2023. However, it took more than a year for local, South Carolina, and federal and Nigerian officials to get through all the requirements to get Lawal in custody in Nigeria and bring him to the United States to face charges, officials said.
A grand jury indicted Lawal on five counts: child exploitation resulting in death, distribution of child pornography, coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, cyberstalking resulting in death, and attempted extortion. The indictment had not been made public as of Monday afternoon.
Lawal could have faced the death penalty, but federal authorities said they made an agreement with the Nigerian government to not seek the death penalty in exchange for the extradition. “We have made the commitment to Nigeria and we will honor it,” Daniels said.
The tragedy of Gavin’s death led to national news coverage and the passage of a bill in the South Carolina legislature, Gavin’s Law, that cracks down on sextortion. The law makes sexual extortion a felony offense and an aggravated felony if the victim is a minor, vulnerable adult, or if the victim suffers bodily injury or death directly related to the crime.
Rep. Guffey has also filed a lawsuit in federal court against Meta (formerly Facebook), the parent company of Instagram. The pending lawsuit alleges the companies failed to protect unsuspecting minors from online sexual attacks.
The charges against Lawal come after Brandon Guffey’s national push for tougher action by governments and social media companies. His efforts have been the subject of worldwide news coverage, including in People magazine, CNN and Fox News.
Brandon Guffey, a Republican, represents Rock Hill in the S.C. House of Representatives, after previously serving on York County Council.
Nigeria is a country of 220 million people in West Africa. Its official language is English, but people there speak hundreds of other languages. There is currently a U.S. State Department warning on traveling to Nigeria because of heightened risks of crime and terrorism.
U.S. attorney’s statement and news conference
The U.S. Attorney for South Carolina, Adair Ford Boroughs, said in a statement and at a news conference Monday that many agencies helped make the extradition possible, including Nigerian government agencies.
“We will not allow predators who target our children to hide behind a keyboard or across the ocean,” Boroughs said. “Today we honor Gavin’s life and continue our fight against sextortion by holding this defendant accountable.”
At the news conference following the hearing, Boroughs and other law officers urged “parents and caregivers” to talk bluntly with their children about the dangers of the internet.
“Explain to your children that strangers on the internet may not be who you think they are,” said Boroughs, adding that children never should give out personal information to those they do not know, including even their real name.
South Carolina Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark Keel, whose agents also worked on the case, said at the news conference that some good had come out of Gavin’s tragic death.
“The family’s response to this unimaginable tragedy has been nothing short of inspiring,” said Keel. “We will never know how many kids the Guffey family has saved in their passionate pursuit of justice for Gavin. What we do know is they will not stop. You can no longer hide in the basement in a faraway country without fear of being arrested, extradited and brought here to face the families of those you’ve torn apart.
“Law enforcement will not stop going after criminals who prey on our most vulnerable — the children,” Keel said.
The Guffey sextortion case is believed to be the first in South Carolina where a defendant was extradited from a foreign country to face the charges.
Steve Jensen, FBI Special Agent in charge for South Carolina, said at the news conference Lawal’s use of social media was tracked by law enforcement.
Lawal “hid behind a keyboard and terrorized Guffey and his family,” Jensen said.
Jensen did not say how the FBI identified Lawal as a suspect, but such investigative efforts to identify unknown subjects on the internet typically involve sophisticated location and tracking techniques of suspects’ computers and cellphones, as well as identifying holders of financial accounts to which extorted money is sent.
Guffey’s wife and one of his other sons were with him at court and the news conference but did not speak. Other members of Guffey’s family and friends were there, including York County legislators Heath Sessions and David Martin, and other legislators from across the state.
Brandon Guffey speaks out
Guffey did not speak in court, but at the news conference he thanked law enforcement officers for their long and complex investigation.
“This crime targets your deepest, darkest shame,” Guffey said.
Gavin Guffey had just graduated from Rock Hill High School when he died. He was known for his love of art, music and life, his father said.
“Gavin seemed to bring joy to everyone,” he said. “Gavin just lit up a room.”
Guffey said he has helped hundreds of families so other children will not be hurt and families not devastated.
Guffey said he will continue to fight for better laws and regulations to protect children online.
“I can’t save Gavin but I can hope to save other kids,” he said.
Brandon Guffey talked to the media from both Carolinas after the news conference. He spoke of his continuing battle with what he called “Big Tech” over safety for children.
He called for “responsible technology” and an emphasis on putting “kids over profits.”
Lawal was represented in court Monday by federal public defenders Katherine Evatt and Jeremy Thompson.
In addition to Daniels, assistant federal prosecutors on the case in court Monday were Lothrop Morris and Michael Shedd.
Lawal’s aliases that he used online were “Bellajam1et28,” “Bellajannet30,” “Aliceconner566,” “Lawal Hassan,” “Hassan Lawal,” according to court records.
Two law officers from Nigeria who helped in the extradition were also in the courtroom on Monday. The small federal courtroom was packed with more than 40 law officers, journalists and relatives and friends of the Guffey family.
Hodges told Lawal that the United States has a system of justice that affords a defendant multiple rights, but those rights are balanced with the rights of the community and victims.
This story was originally published January 27, 2025 at 11:20 AM.
