6.5 years in prison and TBS for man (25) who sexually abused dozens of girls online

NOS News•today, 11:04•Amended today, 11:23

The man suspected of sexually abusing thirty, mainly underage, victims online has been sentenced to 6.5 years in prison. Gianni de W. has also been sentenced to TBS with conditions.

The Public Prosecution Service previously demanded seven years and a TBS with compulsory treatment against the 25-year-old man from Etten-Leur. “You have made a habit of possessing, acquiring and producing child pornography,” the court in Breda said. For more than eight years, De W. was guilty of sextortion, where young people are seduced into sharing intimate photos and videos.

According to the judge, De W. put his own needs first and was not concerned about the suffering he caused the girls. The victims still feel shame, inferiority, sadness and anger. “You have caused enormous damage to many girls.” The judge also mentioned the impact it has had on their families.

He called it brave and courageous of the victims who reported the incident to their parents and the police. Many victims were also in court today, the judge said.

One of the victims told her story anonymously last year:

Sextortion victim tells her story

De W. must also pay a total of more than 91,000 euros in damages. The amounts range from 500 euros to more than 17,000 euros per victim. Not all victims asked for compensation. More than twenty of them did.

According to the judge, the case “centers on a major social problem”. By this he means sextortion. The judge previously mentioned that it is good that a lot of attention is paid to this phenomenon.

De W. was charged with extorting 28 underage girls and two women. He is said to have killed a total of 172 victims, but these thirty reported the crime.

He became friends with his victims on social media and over time they sent him nude photos and sex videos. If they stopped doing that, he would put previously obtained images online.

In some cases he actually published the images online, resulting in shame for the victims. Shame was also the key word in the girls’ statements. “You scared me so much,” said one of the girls. “You just kept going, 24/7. I felt a sense of horror and disgust.” Many of them sought psychological help, some developed suicidal thoughts.

Upon his arrest, police found a huge mountain of evidence. Hundreds of thousands of photos, videos and social media profiles were found on phones, a computer and hard drives. Almost all of the footage contained scantily clad girls, nude photos and videos of sexual acts by the victims.

De W. previously confessed and expressed regret several times. According to behavioral experts, he has reduced accountability.

De W. was arrested in October 2022 and has been in custody since then. Six sitting days were set aside for the trial. The first day of the trial was in March.