British-born Somali sexual predator jailed after blackmailing Muslims as young as 15

A British-born Somali sexual predator has been jailed after blackmailing Muslims as young as 15.

Waleed Saeed, 31, targeted culturally conservative young men as he catfished them by posing to be a transgender woman or young woman.

Using false online profiles, he would encourage those he targeted to send him intimate pictures.

The Somali predator, from Ilford, east London, would then reveal himself to be a man, using the compromising pictures to blackmail his victims.

TRENDING

Stories

Videos

Your Say

He demanded hundreds of pounds from victims as he threatened to share the intimate images to their families or publicly.

He was caught in 2024 after he coerced a victim into meeting on three occasions in an east London park where he raped and sexually assaulted him.

After being found guilty of 17 offences against five men - two of whom were aged between 15 and 17 - he has now been jailed for 16 years at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

He has also been handed a 10-year Sexual Harm Protection Order, the Metropolitan Police said.

The Metropolitan Police believe Saeed may have 50 to 70 more victims.

Detectives have combed through similar cases and found 24 where details of offending were similar enough to lead police to suspect Saeed may have been the culprit.

This would place the number of victims between 70 and 90.

Lead investigator Detective Constable Peter Collington said his offending showed a "level of deliberate manipulation and cruelty that caused immense harm".

LATEST CRIME NEWS:

• Inside the haunting trial of Preston Davey's murderers and the exact moment sentencing was passed
• Woman jailed for death of stepdaughter after placing her in scalding hot bath nearly 50 years ago
• Trans ex-soldier jailed for masturbating in front of horrified nurses

And Timothy Greene said Saeed was adapt at "turning the psychological screw".

His offending dates back to 2018, with one victim telling the court he felt "trapped and lost", adding that Saeed had taken his virginity.

He sent the sex offender more than £3,600 in fear his family and friends would ostracise him if they found out.

"The shame I felt by letting this happen to me is something I will have to live with for the rest of my life," he told the court.

Saeed used social media platform Snapchat to target victims.

His usernames included variations on "blsup" - including "blsup1" and "blsup2021", and variations on "ComeDeal" - such as "comedeal" and "comedealillstop".

On other accounts he would pose as a transgender woman with usernames including "Trans Girl Leah" and "amzyyyy09".

Mr Collington said: "As part of our investigation, we've wrapped dedicated support around those who have already come forward.

"Following his sentence, I am making a direct appeal to other victim-survivors who may not have had the confidence to come forward, to please contact us.

"We want to be absolutely clear that no one should ever have their sexuality exploited or weaponised against them in this way.

"You will be treated with compassion, sensitivity and absolute confidentiality. What has been done to you is wrong, and we will do everything in our power to support you."

Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter