Teenager killed himself after being caught in sextortion blackmail scam run by African crime ring

By OLIVIA CHRISTIE, NEWS REPORTER Published: 11:32, 1 July 2026 | Updated: 11:59, 1 July 2026 A teenager killed himself after he became caught in a sextortion blackmail scam run by a crime ring based in West Africa, an inquest has heard.  Cai Rhys Davies, 18, sent intimate pictures and videos to a woman posing as a would-be romantic interest on a fake dating site.  The teen then received messages from the blackmailers demanding he send money to stop them releasing the images on YouTube and to his friends.   Cai attempted to take his own life in his bedroom on the same day the scammers, who were based in the Ivory Coast, sent the demand in May last year.  He died four days later in hospital - with his cause of death being given as a brain injury.  The inquest in Pontypridd, South Wales, heard keen footballer Cai had suffered double tragedy as a young child when both his parents died one year apart from each other.  His mother died from suicide when he was four and his father from sepsis when he was five. He was raised by his grandparents. His brother Ethan Davies said Cai didn't speak about the loss of his parents, couldn't control his emotions, and said he struggled with ADHD and behavioural issues. Cai Rhys Davies, 18, sent intimate pictures and videos to a woman posing as a would-be romantic interest on a fake dating site Rachel Denner, Cai's former support worker at school, said she received a Facebook message from him on May 29, along with a message request from someone using the name 'Melissa Calvert'. Cai had sent her messages asking whether she had received a message from Melissa Calvert and whether she had opened them. When she opened the message the next day there was an intimate picture and video. DC Jack Cotton, a criminal investigator, told the inquest the name Melissa Calvert was likely to be a fake name and said Cai had been the victim of a blackmail sextortion scam carried out by a 'large scale operation in the Ivory Coast'. He said someone would have created a false Facebook account pretending to be a white woman from London of a similar age to Cai. DC Cotton said they hadn't been able to retrieve all the messages - but the conversation would likely quickly have turned sexual. He believed Cai sent intimate photos later used to blackmail him. IP address details and phone numbers tracked the account back to the Ivory Coast. On the evening of May 29 the blackmailer threatened to release videos of him if he didn't pay them.  They told Cai they would send the video to his family and friends and post it on YouTube, adding that it would 'ruin his life'. Cai said he didn't have the money and told them he couldn't send anything because he was in hospital with his grandmother. His last interaction with the blackmailer was at 9.30am on May 30 - hours before Cai was found in his bedroom at Llantrisant, near Pontypridd. DC Cotton said if the phone had been based in the UK they would've been able to pursue criminal proceedings, but they could not identify who they were and could not bring any prosecution against them.  DC Cotton urged the public to be aware of unsolicited messages on social media, especially if the conversation quickly turns sexual and they ask for intimate photos. The inquest was told that when Cai was around 12 years old he had begun to struggle with low moods and had started taking cannabis and drinking alcohol.  Ethan said he noticed his brother appeared to be struggling 'more than usual' before he took his own life.  He said being a victim of the sextortion may have contributed to his brother feeling low. South Wales coroner Rachel Knight said Cai had had a 'difficult and traumatic childhood'. She recorded his medical cause of death as hypoxic brain injury. She concluded: 'I find that it was more likely than not that personal stress in his life and becoming the victim of a sextortion scam more than minimally contributed to his death by suicide.' Ms Knight said she thought there was a lack of education in the general public about sextortion blackmail. She said she would be sending a Regulation 28 report to the Minister for the Department of Culture Media & Sport and the education minister and their Welsh counterparts about whether there's sufficient public knowledge about such scams. - For confidential support, call Samaritans on 116 123, visit samaritans.org or visit https://www.thecalmzone.net/get-support No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. 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