This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-33146537
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Ronan Hughes: Parents tell of Nigerian blackmail gang | Ronan Hughes: Parents tell of Nigerian blackmail gang |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The parents of a County Tyrone teenager who took his own life have said a Nigerian gang was blackmailing him over intimate photographs. | The parents of a County Tyrone teenager who took his own life have said a Nigerian gang was blackmailing him over intimate photographs. |
| Gerard and Teresa Hughes said the gang demanded more than £3,000 from their son, Ronan, and then sent images of him to his social media friends. | |
| Speaking to the Irish News newspaper, they criticised police "inaction" after their son revealed what was going on. | Speaking to the Irish News newspaper, they criticised police "inaction" after their son revealed what was going on. |
| They said his death, less than two weeks ago, could have been prevented. | They said his death, less than two weeks ago, could have been prevented. |
| At the time, it was believed the Coalisland teenager was tricked into posting pictures online, and police said they are investigating whether he was being blackmailed. | At the time, it was believed the Coalisland teenager was tricked into posting pictures online, and police said they are investigating whether he was being blackmailed. |
| Speaking for the first time since their son's death on 5 June, the couple described their son's online blackmailers as "relentless". | |
| They said he was being blackmailed over images he posted online after receiving photographs from a girl. | |
| His mother said: "We want there to be changes so if a child out there is being bullied online they can go to the police or other authorities with their concerns. | |
| "We don't want another family to go through what we've gone through." | |
| Ronan's parents told the Irish News that their son, a pupil at St Joseph's Grammar in Donaghmore, had confided in them three days before his death about a fake Facebook account. | |
| He said the blackmailers said they would send the images to his online friends unless he paid £3,300 within 48 hours. | |
| Ronan died just hours after learning that his blackmailers had carried out their threat. | |
| 'Worried' | |
| His parents believe he would still be alive if his case had been treated more urgently by the Police Service of Northern Ireland. | |
| "His biggest worry was that his friends would see these images, " Mr Hughes said. | |
| But when he took his son to Dungannon police station, they were told there was only one officer on duty. | |
| "A policeman said to us there was very little they could do as he was there on his own that night. | |
| "He scribbled down a few notes and told us to ignore the blackmail. He told us to come back the next morning. | |
| "I knew Ronan was looking for help and I told him that all my son wanted is for these images not to be posted. He told us that he couldn't guarantee that. For Ronan, it was totally dismissive." | |
| He said if the police had given Ronan an assurance that they would close the site down "Ronan would still be here today". | |
| They returned to the police station the next day where they spent several hours and Ronan's phone was taken. | |
| However, they heard nothing more from the police. | |
| The Nigerian site was closed within two days of the tragedy. | The Nigerian site was closed within two days of the tragedy. |