US Lawyer Tortured Women With Cattle Prod, Shock Collar While Raping Them

NDTV

25-04-2025

New Delhi:
A New York City lawyer has been accused of transforming his Midtown apartment into a torture chamber, where he allegedly raped, drugged, urinated on, and abused women using a cattle prod and electric shock collar.
Ryan Hemphill, 43, was indicted Thursday on 116 criminal counts, including predatory sexual assault, rape, and witness tampering after prosecutors said he lured at least six women through "sugar daddy" websites and subjected them to hours of sadistic abuse.
Between October 2024 and March 2025, Hemphill allegedly used platforms like Seeking Arrangements, Craigslist, and FetLife to pose as a wealthy benefactor offering cash in exchange for companionship or sex, as per Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
But when the women arrived at his apartment near the Empire State Building, they encountered what prosecutors described as a "house of horrors."
Hemphill allegedly restrained the victims with handcuffs, slapped and punched them, and subjected them to psychological and physical torment. In several instances, he allegedly used a cattle prod to shock women, and forced others to wear an electric shock collar - devices typically used on livestock - while raping them.
He also allegedly urinated on some of the women and reenacted past sexual traumas that victims had confided in him about.
Prosecutors say Hemphill drugged the women, either by force or deception, using heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine - all of which were later found in large quantities in his apartment.
Surveillance cameras were hidden throughout his home, capturing videos of the encounters. According to Bragg, the recovered footage shows dozens -potentially hundreds - of different women.
"The defendant told survivors he was untouchable," Bragg said during a press conference, as per The NY Times. He used his law degree and money as both sword and shield - manipulating, coercing, and silencing his victims, Bragg added.
"The indictment makes clear that he was wrong," he said.
After the assaults, Hemphill allegedly used intimidation tactics to prevent the women from reporting him. He threatened them over text, claiming ties to law enforcement and organised crime, reported People Magazine.
In one message, he told a victim not to bother contacting the police because he "knows half the precinct." In another case, he reportedly drafted a contract offering $2,000 to a woman in exchange for dropping her complaint with the Manhattan Special Victims Squad. Some victims were even forced to record videos saying the encounters were consensual - later used as leverage.
Hemphill was arrested on March 1. During a search of his apartment, police recovered a cattle prod, shock collars, hundreds of bullets, high-capacity magazines, fake currency, handcuffs, and large amounts of narcotics.
He pleaded not guilty to all charges and was ordered held without bail at Rikers Island.
This isn't the first time Hemphill has faced accusations of violent behaviour. In 2015, he was tried for allegedly choking an ex-girlfriend and holding a 10-inch knife to her throat. A jury found him not guilty.