"He started to harass her father by telephoning him on his landline"
Jamel Ali, a 26-year-old from Chester, vindictively sent images and videos of himself having sex with his girlfriend to her father, after he was rejected by the dad and refused to let her marry him.
Jamel was jailed at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court after pleading guilty to distributing private sexual photos and films with intent to cause distress and two offences of harassment without violence.
The trial heard how Jamel started a relationship with the woman from Stoke-on-Trent after meeting her in 2015 on the social media platform, Instagram.
In summer, 2016, when the daughter told her parents about her feelings for Jamel, they did not accept him and said he was not a suitable person for her to marry.
Something that is a well-known reaction from South Asian parents and especially, fathers, if they feel that the man does not meet ‘their’ expectations for their daughter.
Prosecutor at the hearing, Neil Ahuja said: “The defendant’s assessment [by the parents] is that they considered him too westernised.”
She tried to end the relationship, but it didn’t.
Irrespective of the parent’s reaction towards him, the pair continued with their relationship without the knowledge of her parents.
Mr Ahuja said: “Ali became possessive and controlling”.
“They had a consensual sexual relationship. He took videos and photos of her naked and in her underwear.”
“She sent him videos of her performing sexual acts upon herself. And he recorded himself having sex with her.”
Jamel kept the videos filmed of them both having sex and the naked photos of her after they eventually parted.
At the start of 2017, she agreed for her parents to find her a suitable husband as an arranged marriage. In September 2017, she accepted a marriage proposal.
Jamel found out about her getting married to another man and became abusive. He threatened to send the sex videos and nude photos of her, to her father and relatives.
On October 8 and 9, 2017, Jamel sent her the explicit images and said he would send them to her father to show him ‘show him what kind of girl she was’.
Mr Ahuja described Jamel’s obsession with her and revengeful nature and said:
“He threatened to send screenshots to her brothers on Facebook. He made threats to turn up at her house, kick the door down and take her. He said they would get married whether her heart was in it or not.
“He started to harass her father by telephoning him on his landline, mobile and contacting him on WhatsApp. He made threats to abduct her.”
On October 10, 2017, her brother heard footsteps on the roof of their house at about 12.30am and when he went out, he saw a BMW driving away.
Recalling that point in time, Mr Ahuja said:
“Her father received a call from the defendant. He claimed he was already married to his daughter. He said he would be at the house within five minutes and he wanted to see ‘his wife’.
“The defendant came up the drive and knocked on the door. They were all terrified.”
Then, Jamel shouted and demanded to see “his wife”. He continued with threatening behaviour and said: “Open the door or I will kick it in”.
With the brother of the victim in possession of her father’s phone, Jamel sent “a WhatsApp message containing a picture of Ali in bed with the victim”.
He then sent a message which followed saying “Would you like to see more?”.
This is was a very sickening experience for her brother to see.
Then the police were called to the family’s address.
Mr Ahuja then told the court, how Jamel continued with the messages irrespectively:
“While police were at the address another message was sent to a phone in her brother’s possession.
“The defendant threatened to send pictures to her father’s friends in Stoke-on-Trent. He threatened to damage her father’s reputation.
“It was followed by further video recordings which showed the defendant having sex with the victim.”
The vile and revengeful actions of Jamel Ali have impacted the family with shock, disgust and enormous relationship and psychological issues.
The victim has been so distressed that she wanted to take her own life. The shame and fallout of this whole situation have left her completely distraught.
Despite having no previous convictions and acting “totally inappropriately and out of character” according to his defence lawyer Adam Antoszkiw, Judge David Fletcher still gave Jamel Ali a custodial sentence.
He was jailed for nine months and given two restraining orders which prevent him from contacting his victim or her father for 10 years.
Judge Fletcher said to Jamal:
“Rather than accept the marriage you had hoped for was not going to go ahead, you chose to embark on the most hurtful behaviour that one can imagine. It was selfish, vindictive and nasty behaviour.
“This is very much a 21st-century offence. This sort of behaviour is becoming a feature of life which is unpleasant and unwanted.”
Revenge porn is a criminal offence in the UK with offenders liable to face a maximum prison sentence of up to two years and this case highlights how this kind of abhorrent behaviour is a very serious and damaging matter for all those concerned.
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