Toronto police say a 25-year-old Hamilton man has been charged after allegedly threatening to distribute a woman’s nude photos.
Police launched an investigation earlier this month. They allege that in the course of an online relationship between the victim and a man she knew as Tim James, the suspect asked for intimate images, which she provided.
Investigators say these requests “escalated into demands” for the woman to perform sex acts on webcam.
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When she didn’t comply, the suspect allegedly threatened to send the previously provided images to friends and family.
“As the demands for sexual acts became more extreme, the victim reported the incident to police,” investigators said in a release on Monday.
Police executed search warrants in Oakville and Hamilton on Friday and Brandin Basso was arrested that evening. He has been charged with extortion and publishing an intimate image without consent.
The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact Toronto police or Crime Stoppers. Investigators believe the suspect used several fake names and a computer-generated phone number (647–699–6831) in his contact with the victim.
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Police provided a list of known aliases:
1) Tim James
2) Smith Jones
3) Mike Jones
4) John_Turner 1029384756
5) Mikejames123456
6) Johnybravo1029384756
7) Timjames12345
8) Smithjames1234567892
9) Timjames1234567890
10) Timjames123456
11) Carlos