Latest news with #honeytrap
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Judge warns thug involved in 'honeytrap' attack not to take revenge on friends
A thug has been warned by a judge not to take revenge on his one-time friends who involved him in a sick 'honeytrap' attack. David Bambrough allowed his flat in Small Heath to be used by associates Daniel Aston, Steven Baker, his son Matthew Baker and Shannon Wolleter to beat up Anthony Cooper after they kidnapped him on October 3, 2021. He also joined in the attack by kicking the victim, for which he admitted assault, but was the only one spared jail last month. READ MORE: Face of 'obsessive' ex-boyfriend who tormented two women and cut one's hair Meanwhile, the other four were sent down having admitted more serious offences of kidnap and unlawful wounding. Bambrough, aged 41, and now from Moseley, was back at Birmingham Crown Court on Tuesday, August 5, along with Matthew Baker, in order to be made the subject of a restraining order banning them from contact with Mr Cooper. During the hearing Judge Dean Kershaw confirmed he had received information from 'various sources' alleging that Bambrough had made comments about 'wanting to get people who had got him into this'. He told Bambrough he was 'fortunate' to receive a suspended sentence but he would 'review whether rehabilitation is the right course' if there were further issues. Addressing his barrister Judge Kershaw said: "I want to be clear, please explain to him, do the sentence I imposed and put it behind him." He further clarified that it had not been Mr Cooper or any of the other defendants that had made accusations against Bambrough. It is understood he had been overhead making comments upon leaving court following his sentencing last month. Mr Cooper had been friends with his attackers and even worked at the same charity as them. But Steven Baker turned on him due to being unhappy that he was in a relationship with a woman named Bethany Love, who he supposedly saw as a daughter. There was also an allegation Mr Cooper was in debt for £150 to Aston. Consequently Baker, his son Matthew Baker, and Aston concocted a plot to kidnap him. They used Aston's then girlfriend Wolleter to lure him to a spot on the street by acting as a 'honeytrap' and pretending she fancied him. Once they succesfully abducted Mr Cooper they brutally beat him up over the course of the next few hours before dropping him back near his home. He had been smacked in the head with a tyre iron, punched, kicked and threatened with a knife to his throat while Wolleter and stamped on his genitals as a final insult to injury. FULL STORY: 'Chop your legs off' - Full story of honeytrap plot sparked by Facebook post But their attack was as clumsy as it was vicious and they left a trail of evidence linking them to the assault. Aston, aged 33, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years and eight months albeit he has already been released having been remanded into custody at an early stage. Wolleter, aged 30, of Orchard Way in Trowbidge, Wiltshire, received two years and ten months. Steven Baker, 61, of Runcorn Road, Balsall Heath, and Matthew Baker, 29, of Tynedale Road, Tyseley, were both jailed for three years and nine months. Bambrough was sentenced to six months suspended, including 35 days of rehabilitation activity and 100 hours of unpaid work. Steven Baker was excused from attending Tuesday's restraining order hearing for health reasons but his barrister accepted the prosecution's application in his absence. Wolleter and Aston will be called to court to be made subject to the same order at a later date, albeit they remain behind bars.
Daily Mail
20-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Hair-brained honeytrap: Bungling kidnap gang lure celebrity Belgian barber to London after they wrongly thought he had a £500k cryptocurrency fortune... then drop him off to catch train when plot unravels
A barber to footballers was lured to London in a 'honeytrap' plot by bungling thugs who demanded £500,000 – then discovered he had only £2,000. Quentin Cepeljac, from Belgium, was tricked into travelling to the capital by a gang who believed he was also a wealthy cryptocurrency trader. But after threatening him with a machete, they learned his crypto accounts held just £6.71 – leading one to exclaim: 'Are you kidding me?' One of his hapless assailants even had to leave the scene of the crime early because he was wearing a tag and had to be home to meet an 8pm curfew. The 'bait' in the honeytrap was Belgian Davina Raaymakers, now 20, who was living in Acton, west London, with her boyfriend Adlan Haji, 28. Their accomplices, who Isleworth Crown Court heard added 'muscle' to the endeavour, were 30-year-old Alexander Khalil, of Hampstead, and 24-year-old Omar Sharif, of Cricklewood. Mr Cepeljac, 21, who cuts the hair of football stars in Belgium, had been befriended on TikTok and Instagram by a blonde 18-year-old who promised to spend a weekend with him at a luxury tenth-floor flat in central London. But when he arrived to meet Raaymakers, he was led to a basement bedsit in Shepherd's Bush and attacked. The 'bait' in the honeytrap was Belgian Davina Raaymakers (left) who was living in west London, with her boyfriend Adlan Haji (right) Mr Cepeljac was grabbed and had a machete held to his neck and another knife to his leg while being punched and kicked in the stomach. In the nine-hour ordeal, his attackers threatened to kill him and showed him footage of them purporting to stab someone to show the terrified barber what they were capable of. They also took all his belongings, including his passport, phone and Louis Vuitton wallet embossed with his initials. Prosecutor Nicholas Dunham KC said the gang demanded £500,000 to be transferred to them. But Mr Cepeljac said: 'I don't have that kind of money.' Haji responded: 'Are you kidding me?' They then reduced the demand to £50,000 – before settling for the £2,000 he had in his current account, which they split among themselves, friends and family. The gang then forced Mr Cepeljac to phone a friend in Belgium to plead for money. But the friend called Belgian police, who contacted officers in London. The Metropolitan Police's Flying Squad was then waiting for Mr Cepeljac when his attackers – realising he was of no use to them – returned him to St Pancras to catch the Eurostar back to Brussels. Mr Cepeljac led police to the now deserted Airbnb flat in Shepherd's Bush, where officers found it had been forensically cleaned with bleach. Through CCTV footage, phone data and tracing who had booked the Airbnb, officers tracked down the culprits three months later. Detective Constable Jim Holland of the Flying Squad said: 'We've never had one like this before, a person honeytrapped in the UK who's come from abroad and had this happen to him.' Raaymakers had told Mr Cepeljac she came from a wealthy family who had properties abroad, while Mr Cepeljac – who is also an influencer in Belgium – told her that he dealt in cryptocurrency with some degree of success. After meeting in person in Brussels, he arrived in London on May 5 last year. But when he turned up at the address he had been given, he was jumped by Haji, along with Khalil and Sharif, who had their faces covered. Mr Dunham said: 'Mr Haji grabbed him by the neck and held a large knife or machete to his throat ... At this point Miss Raaymakers exited the premises.' He added that Sharif had to leave at around 7.30pm because he was electronically tagged due to an earlier offence and needed to be home by 8pm. He said an associate of the gang accompanied Mr Cepeljac to St Pancras in a taxi the following morning and returned his passport and phone. In his victim impact statement, Mr Cepeljac said he now suffers flashbacks, has trouble sleeping, being alone or leaving his home, and finds it difficult to trust other people, particularly women. Each of defendants, who are all unemployed, admitted blackmail and will be sentenced later. Recorder Nicola Shannon KC said they would face long jail terms. The maximum sentence for blackmail is 14 years in prison.
CNA
10-07-2025
- Politics
- CNA
China says foiled foreign spying plots including 'honeytrap'
BEIJING: China said on Thursday (Jul 10) it had cracked three spying plots, including one in which a public servant was lured by the "seductive beauty" of a foreign agent, urging government workers to remain vigilant against overseas threats. Beijing has stepped up espionage warnings in recent years as relations with the United States and other Western nations have worsened. Its Ministry of State Security (MSS) said Thursday that foreign spooks "have been increasingly active in infiltrating and stealing secrets from China" and were targeting public officials. "Individual officials have caused the damaging effects of leaking secrets due to a lack of belief, a weakened sense of discipline and a loosened awareness of rules ... harming national security and interests," the MSS said. It described a case in which a provincial government employee surnamed Li fell into a "meticulously designed honeytrap" while travelling overseas for work. "Unable to resist the seductive beauty of the foreign intelligence agent," Li was then blackmailed with "intimate photos" and forced to hand over official documents once back in China. He was sentenced to five years in prison for espionage, according to the statement. Another case involved a municipal cadre called Hou, who secretly photographed confidential documents and sold them to foreign spy agencies to recover lost savings from a gambling addiction. Hou was later held "criminally responsible", the ministry said, without specifying his punishment. The ministry also detailed a third case in which a high-flying young official lost his job after sharing confidential information with a relative who photographed and sent it to overseas spy agencies. "Leaks are often hidden in the small details of our work lives," the ministry said. "If our ideals and beliefs are not strong ... they may eventually plummet into the criminal abyss designed by foreign spy agencies." China's spy agency did not name the countries alleged to be behind the plots. Asked which countries were involved by AFP at a regular briefing on Thursday, foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said she was "not familiar with this issue". Beijing and Washington have long traded accusations of espionage, punishable by death in China. Last month, Beijing accused the US Central Intelligence Agency of an "absurd" attempt to recruit Chinese citizens via "amateurish" videos posted on social media. In April, Chinese security officials said they had implicated three US "secret agents" in cyberattacks during February's Asian Winter Games in the northeastern city of Harbin.
Japan Times
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
China says it foiled foreign spying plots, including 'honeytrap'
China said Thursday it had cracked three spying plots, including one in which a public servant was lured by the "seductive beauty" of a foreign agent, urging government workers to remain vigilant against overseas threats. Beijing has stepped up espionage warnings in recent years as relations with the United States and other Western nations have worsened. Its state security ministry said Thursday that foreign spooks "have been increasingly active in infiltrating and stealing secrets from China" and were targeting public officials. It did not name the countries alleged to be behind the plots. "Individual officials have caused the damaging effects of leaking secrets due to a lack of belief, a weakened sense of discipline and a loosened awareness of rules ... harming national security and interests," the ministry said. It described a case in which a provincial government employee surnamed Li fell into a "meticulously designed honeytrap" while traveling overseas for work. "Unable to resist the seductive beauty of the foreign intelligence agent," Li was then blackmailed with "intimate photos" and forced to hand over official documents once back in China. He was sentenced to five years in prison for espionage, according to the statement. Another case involved a municipal cadre called Hou, who secretly photographed confidential documents and sold them to foreign spy agencies to recover lost savings from a gambling addiction. Hou was later held "criminally responsible," the ministry said, without specifying his punishment. The ministry also detailed a third case in which a high-flying young official lost his job after sharing confidential information with a relative who photographed and sent it to overseas spy agencies. "Leaks are often hidden in the small details of our work lives," the ministry said. "If our ideals and beliefs are not strong ... they may eventually plummet into the criminal abyss designed by foreign spy agencies." Beijing and Washington have long traded accusations of espionage, punishable by death in China. Last month, Beijing accused the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency of an "absurd" attempt to recruit Chinese citizens via "amateurish" videos posted on social media. In April, Chinese security officials said they had implicated three U.S. "secret agents" in cyberattacks during February's Asian Winter Games in the northeastern city of Harbin. The state security ministry also said in March it had sentenced to death a former engineer for leaking state secrets to a foreign power.
The Sun
08-07-2025
- The Sun
Honeytrap gang who lured lovestruck colleague to flat where they battered him over £150 debt jailed
A GANG who lured and attacked their own friend in a honeytrap scheme have been jailed. The judge branded the four thugs as 'animals' after they battered their friend over £150 of debt. 3 Daniel Aston, 33, and his then-girlfriend Shannon Wolleter hatched the plot alongside 61-year-old Steven Baker and his son Matthew. The gang targeted their friend Anthony Cooper after saying they didn't approve of his girlfriend and because he owed them £150. They created an elaborate trap for Anthony, by using Wolleter as bait. She started texting Anthony, while pretending that she was interested in him romantically. The pair arranged to meet up on October 3, 2021, for a 'sexual encounter' at 8.12pm. When he arrived, he was dragged off the street and taken into a silver Mercedes. Baker shouted 'come here, you little c***' before beating Anthony, while Matthew Baker threatened to cut off the charity worker's legs. Matthew Baker sent videos of the crime to various people on social media, once they reached a friend's flat. Anthony was then dragged to a car park before being dropped near to his address. He was treated for his injuries, while the violent gang of four were arrested. Why You Should Blur Your Home on Google Maps – Safety Tips for Homeowners Presiding over Birmingham Crown Court, Judge Dean Kershaw branded the group as 'animals' and described their actions as 'cowardly, planned and vile'. Aston was slapped with a five-year and eight month sentence, while Wolleter was handed a two year and 10 month sentence. Both Bakers were given sentences of three years and nine months. David Bambrough, 41, was handed a six month suspended sentence after allowing the gang to use his flat during the assault. Anthony met the group through a homelessness charity and had considered each of them friends. However, the friendship broke down when he started dating a woman called Bethany love. The prosecution, Lachlan Stewart, said that this caused the sinister gang to start calling Anthony nasty names. Mr Stewart said: 'Steven Baker saw her like a daughter. There was also a suggestion Matthew Baker may have been in a relationship with her in the past. 'The group started going around calling Mr Cooper a paedo, a rapist and sex offender entirely without basis.' Anthony opened up about how the incident has left him unable to trust the people he cares about in his life. He said: 'What makes things worse is I thought all the people involved were my friends. 'It really made me not want to make more friends. 'When it was happening I thought I was going to die. 'I have never been so scared in all my life.' 3
