Man who urged vulnerable woman to kill herself while he watched online for his own sexual thrills is sentenced to nine years
Tyler Webb, 23, repeatedly told his victim to end her life during weeks of what she called 'calculated psychological violence' because he wanted to watch her die on a video call.
The defendant, of King Crescent South in Loughborough, was the first person in the country to be charged with encouraging serious self-harm online under Section 184 of the Online Safety Act 2023, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.
He pleaded guilty in May to that charge and a separate charge of encouraging suicide between June 22 and July 11 last year.
Handing Webb the hybrid order, meaning he will begin his sentence in hospital until he is deemed fit for prison, at Leicester Crown Court on Friday, Judge Timothy Spencer KC agreed that 'very largely' Webb was motivated by sexual gratification.
He said: 'Your persuasion extended over a substantial period of time. The two of you were not in any sort of suicide pact - it was always you hang yourself for my pleasure.'
Webb, with long black hair and wearing a blue t-shirt, sat in the dock with his head bowed down and hands clasped over his ears before hiding underneath his chair, where he remained for most of the hearing.
He did not respond when asked to confirm his name.
Prosecutor Louise Oakley said the woman, who cannot be named, met Webb on a Reddit forum where people shared mental health support, before the pair started video calling on the Telegram app where they would have conversations which were 'dark in nature'.
Ms Oakley told the court that when Webb encouraged her to harm herself, 'in (the victim's) words, he loved it. Tyler Webb told her it turned him on'.
Telling the court about Webb urging the woman to kill herself, Ms Oakley said: 'He told her he wanted her to do it during a video call so he could watch. He would berate her and say she had nothing to live for and she should die.'
The court heard on one occasion Webb watched the woman attempt suicide by hanging, and when it failed he told her to try again.
The woman contacted the police on July 3 last year because she feared Webb would encourage someone else to harm themselves after he asked her to 'sacrifice' herself, and he was arrested a week later.
In a victim impact statement read aloud to the court by Ms Oakley, the woman wrote: 'I don't want to call this encouraging serious self-harm or suicide, I want to call this what it is - an attempted murder through psychological means.
'What Tyler did was not a mistake, it was calculated psychological violence. He didn't try to kill me with his hands but with his words.
'He had no turmoil while torturing me. He told me that my only value was in dying for his entertainment.
'I'm alive, but the life I have left is altered forever. My life is ruined - my mind and body have been severely damaged.'
Ms Oakley told the court: '(Webb's) user profile on Reddit was identified as u/EmpathicNarcissist and a review of the account revealed numerous anime or gaming characters in various erotic poses with fatal injuries.
'All of the characters were female.'
The prosecutor said the fact Webb refused to turn on his own camera during his video calls with the woman suggests he had insight that 'what he was doing was wrong and he was in effect looking out for himself, not her'.
Ms Oakley told the court: 'We submit his offending involved pre-meditation, persistence and extensive encouragement and advice. He pressurised her and was at times unpleasant.
'Importantly, it appears he was sexually motivated and genuinely wanted to see her die. He knew her vulnerabilities, her previous traumas and knew she had previously attempted suicide.'
Defence barrister Joey Kwong said Webb was in a 'dark time' with his mental health and 'wrongly he adopted such warped behaviour and distorted thinking' from material he saw online.
The court heard that the defendant has been diagnosed with mental health disorders including autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and anxiety and depressive disorders, which have a 'significant impact on his life'.
Dr Ajith Gurusinghe, a treating clinician for Webb who has been in hospital because he is 'unable to cope in the prison regime', told the court the defendant has 'shown some remorse but not completely'.
Webb was also made subject of a restraining order during the hearing.
Detective Constable Lauren Hampton, of Leicestershire Police, said: 'This case is not only truly shocking but also deeply concerning.
'Webb preyed upon a vulnerable woman at a time when she was reaching out to people in an online forum for help and support.
'He quickly gained her trust and then he began with his barrage of vile requests - all the time knowing that what he was telling her to do could result in her ending her own life.
'Thankfully, this did not happen, and the victim was able to report what had happened.'
Alex Johnson, a specialist crown prosecutor in the Special Crime Division of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: 'Tyler Webb contacted a vulnerable woman online and encouraged her to commit serious self-harm and to end her life by hanging.
'He knew she was vulnerable and would act on his requests but went ahead with his persistent requests knowing she may well die.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
So was Lucy Connolly really such a danger that she had to spend a year behind bars? JAN MOIR
After serving 40 per cent of her 31-month sentence, Lucy Connolly walked free from prison on Thursday morning. Remember Lucy? She was found guilty of sending hate crime tweets in the immediate aftermath of the Southport attacks last year, in which three little girls were murdered and others stabbed and injured at a Taylor Swift dance class.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Ten-foot drone came so close to Heathrow passenger jet that pilot and first officer SAW it pass windshield
A ten-foot drone came so close to colliding with a passenger jet that it covered the plane's windscreen. The Airbus A320 had just taken off from London 's Heathrow Airport back in May and was at 9,000 ft when the near-miss occurred, The Sun reports. A report into the incident by investigation bod UK Airpox Board said: 'Both the Captain and First Officer saw a bright white object pass overhead from the opposite direction. 'It appeared to be approximately 2-3 metres in size at the very least.' The report added: 'It may have been larger as it filled a good proportion of the windshield.' The report added that the aircraft was spotted on radar by air traffic controllers. The in-flight incident investigation body was told a suspected drone had been spotted near London's City Airport prior to the incident. 'The Captain only saw the object for a second or two in peripheral vision so could not reliably comment on the shape. No markings were identified.' The pilot stated that the object 'went over us, probably within about 10m'. It is not clear which airline was operating the aircraft. It comes after a drone came within 10 to 20 metres of colliding with a Boeing 737 airliner as it approached Gatwick Airport in April. In a separate incident, a suspected drone came within 10ft of crashing into a British Airways passenger jet flying over London. The plane, operated by the airline's regional carrier BA Cityflyer, was travelling at 3,000ft four nautical miles north west of London City Airport, when pilots noticed an object with lights. The crew of the Embraer 190, which can carry up to 98 passengers, reported spotting the object at 6.10pm on October 31 after climbing out of the east London airport on a route used for domestic services to Edinburgh and Glasgow. While the incident was reported to police, the nature of the object was never formally identified. According to a report filed by the UK Airprox Board, which monitors and analyses near misses, said that both pilots 'instinctively flinched' as the object came 'extremely close' to the aircraft. The report concluded the incident meant there was a 'definite risk of collision' and or required 'providence', an instinctive pilot judgement in response to an emergency situation. In recent years, pilots have warned of the risk of drones causing potentially catastrophic damage if sucked into a jet engine or smashing into a windscreen.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Secret tactics high street stores use to stop shoplifters - as police admit there's 'no point' arresting them
As shoplifting rates double and leading police chiefs admit there's 'no point' arresting thieves, members of the public and shop staff are having to take matters into their own hands. While innocent bystanders have started accosting suspected thieves, this week Lancashire Constabulary issued advice to business owners to say hello to shoplifters when they enter the premises, to deter them from setaling. Meanwhile, staff have also turned to their own secret tactics to catch them in the act, including handing a basket to customers they feel suspicious about. Popular shops including Iceland, Superdrug and Boots are sharing the methods they use to deter shoplifters in the hope that their stores can escape unscathed from the shoplifting epidemic. Staff in Iceland have resorted to locking suspected thieves inside stores to stop them escaping with bags full of produce. A clip shared on TikTok showed a security guard locking up the sliding doors as another member of staff tackled the shoplifter and attempted to wrestle the goods off them. Much to the shock of the thief's companion, the staff refused to let the detained shoplifter go so the accomplice began banging on the entrance, demanding she be released. Dressed in a fleece dressing gown with the hood up, the irate shopper shouted: 'Get off her man, come on, don't do that to her man. Why are you locking the door on her?'. She also yelled at the guards through the door asking them not to 'hold her like that' because 'she's a woman'. Inside, the security guard could be seen collecting several items from the floor and handing them back to shop staff. People in the comments asked whether the guard was allowed to detain the shoplifter but many more jumped to Iceland's defence and said the staff were within their rights to make a citizen's arrest. A citizen's arrest or an arrest without a warrant can be made if a person is in the act of committing an indictable offence or there are reasonable grounds for suspecting they are or might be about to. Offence include theft, burglary and criminal damage. Government advice warns that such arrests should only be made if a police officer cannot do it and if the person might cause harm to themselves or others, cause loss or damage to a property or escape before police arrive. While some supermarkets and shops are using citizens arrests to deter thieves, others are opting for a softer approach. Beauty chain Superdrug have taken to social media with a tongue in cheek campaign warning shoplifters that they are constantly being watched. In one clip, filmed by two staff members at a store in Stourport, outside Worcester, two sales assistants point to their headsets and body worn cameras to show potential thieves that they are being monitored and staff can communicate with each other. The video ends with them holding up a basket to the camera and pointing at it and then at the screen to indicate shoppers should use a basket. A video featuring staff from a shop in Halifax, west Yorkshire, showed the measures taken by the store to deter shoplifters. It followed one staff member as they followed and watched a potential thief who browsed products including a luffa and nail varnish. They appeared in various poses, hiding behind stands and crouching down as the Mission Impossible theme tune played over the clips. As well as watching closely, staff member Caitlin revealed Superdrug stores deter shoplifters by asking if they need any help. High Street pharmacy Boots has also taken to TikTok to promote its Stop, Think, Don't Shoplift campaign. In the minute-long video, a staff member at the Boots in the Arnison Centre, Durham, poses as a shoplifter and goes around the shop pretending to steal items while staff show how they tackle possible thefts. The clip starts by staff greeting the potential thief at the door, smiling, waving and saying hello. They then approach them as they shop, asking if they need any help as they pick up and put down various items. The Durham-based shop also showed off their rotating hooks which they say stops 'pesky thieves' and the security tags and plastic packaging on their beauty products which are difficult to remove. The high street chain has also instituted a rule of only three of each item, making it harder for shoplifters to grab a shelfful of expensive products and make a dash. The clip then shows the member of staff approaching the pretend thief and offering them a basket so it's easier to keep an eye on what they have taken. In another snippet, the fake shoplifter tried to open up luxury products but is fooled by an empty box, with the store advising other locations to use 'dummy boxes' provided by the beauty companies and to security tag the actual items. The video ended by a member of staff telling the would-be thief to 'stop' and 'think', resulting in the customer going through their pockets and bag and handing over an item they had attempted to steal. A store in Nottingham has also taken matters into their hands and installed CCTV to catch out shoplifters. A guard, watching live footage, issues announcements over the tannoy system telling thiefs they've been spotted and to return any stolen items meaning that stock is kept safe and instances of confrontation are avoided. The efforts of shopkeepers up and down the UK come after the total thefts reached 530,643 in the year to March, at an estimated cost of £1.8bn to retailers. Last year, Lancashire Police launched Operation Vulture, which encouraged businesses to use 'customer greeters' to cut down on crime. An online guide called How to Deter a Shoplifter, the force advised: 'By greeting genuine shoppers, not only does this provide a positive impression of your store, it also deters potential shoplifters. 'An offender is less likely to shoplift if they sense that they are to be seen and noticed by staff.' But the advice was criticised by another policing chief has seemingly admitted that there is little deterrent for shoplifters because they are so often freed by courts to steal again. Katy Bourne, the national lead for shoplifting at the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, said: 'People have got to know that they're going to get caught and that there's a meaningful deterrent when they do it. There is no point arresting shoplifters if there is no effective deterrent.' Insisting that it is 'madness' that the thieves blighting Britain's retailers are often not being put behind bars, Ms Bourne told The Telegraph: 'People have got to know that they're going to get caught, and that there's a meaningful deterrent when they do. 'There is no point arresting shoplifters if there is no effective deterrent.'
