Man threatened to tell people ex-wife was HIV positive in blackmail plot

A man who threatened to tell people his ex-wife was HIV positive in a bid to get £48,000 has avoided being sent to jail.

The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, sent Whatsapp messages to the woman earlier this year.

On Tuesday, August 8, Peterborough Crown Court heard he initially asked for £8,000, demanding the rest be given in £2,000 instalments, or he would expose that she was HIV positive to friends and family.

He claimed he was entitled to the money.

In a statement, the victim said if the man carried out the threat, it would humiliate her, and risk her relationship with family members and friends.

But Judge Sean Enright, sentencing, told the man ‘whether you are entitled to the money or not, you are not entitled to make threats of this nature.’

The court also heard the man had sent abusive messages to the victim on social media in the past.

Mark Shelley, defending, said the man had admitted sending the blackmail messages, saying: “He said that he felt forced into doing so as he had exhausted all other options.”

Mr Shelley admitted the threats involved a significant amount of money, and lasted over a number of days, but the defendant had entered guilty pleas, and had shown some remorse.

He said that while the man had previous convictions they were of some age, and, ‘he can be rehabilitated, he has kept out of trouble for a long time.’

The man had pleaded guilty to one count of blackmail and two counts of sending electronic communications with intent to cause stress or anxiety.

Judge Enright sentenced him to 16 months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered him to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work, and pay a £149 victim surcharge.

A restraining order was also imposed ‘without limit of time.’