A 19-year old student from the United States has agreed a plea bargain after he was found guilty for blackmailing fellow male students at his secondary school to have sex with him.
Anthony Stancl, who pleaded "no contest" to repeated sexual assault of a child, faces up to 50 years in jail. He told the court he had been on medication for depression for years. Stancl allegedly posed as a girl on Facebook and then asked his male classmates to send him their naked pictures – using them later to blackmail them for sex. It is believed that he managed to trick at least 31 of his classmates into sending him nude pictures or videos of themselves.
The case came to light after a 16-year old boy told authorities that he was being blackmailed for sex. After exchanging explicit pictures with Stancl when he has 15, the boy said he was threatened to have his naked pictures distributed in school if he refused to have sex with the accused.
The boy’s images were among about 300 explicit pictures and videos of other male students at New Berlin Eisenhower High School in the state of Wisconsin police found on Stancl’s computer.
"I’ve never had a case where the victims and their families were more apprehensive about testifying," Waukesha County district attorney Brad Schimel said, adding that he was satisfied with the plea deal, which spared victims from having to appear in court.
"From the victims’ perspective, they’re relieved we’re doing this," he said.
