Sextortion suspect will be prosecuted for abusing 30 victims

Gianni de W. will be prosecuted for the online abuse of 30 victims, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) said during a hearing at the District Court in Breda on Wednesday. The OM previously said that the 24-year-old Etten-Leur man was suspected of having seduced and manipulated a total of 171 victims into sending nude photos, which he then used to blackmail them.

"We focused on girls who have filed a complaint or pressed charges," said the prosecutor. More girls have been identified and tracked down, but they did not want to press charges. In addition to the 30 girls, the prosecutor's file regarding the case includes 64 other victims.

Several victims were present in the courtroom during the fifth preliminary hearing. The suspect himself was also there. “I just have to deal with it,” he said. "I am also aware of that, that is why I am there." He is no longer being questioned about the case. De W. said that he has cooperated, and is receiving help and guidance in prison.

In January it became known that the police had found 150 file folders with the names of different girls on his computer. There were sometimes thousands of images of a victim within the folder labeled with their name.

The man from Etten-Leur came into contact with his victims via social media. Using fake names, such as Bryan.snapx and Bryansnelgeld, he allegedly offered the girls money for sending him a nude photo. He is accused of then threatening to publish the image online if they did not send even more images. This practice is known in the Netherlands as sextortion.

A large amount of child pornography material was also found on the suspect's computer, investigators said. He has been in custody since October 11 last year. The case will be brought to trial in March. The court has reserved six days for the trial, beginning on March 12.

De W., who has an autism spectrum disorder, is still being examined by a psychologist and psychiatrist. A final report about his mental state will follow.