MONROVIA: A 25- year old resident of the slum community of West Point in Monrovia has apologized to Deputy Minister for Administration at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Gabriel Sarlee, for creating a fake Facebook account in his name to dupe and solicit money from individuals, especially females.
Defendant Varney Burphy was arrested by the Liberia National Police sometime in November of this year and subsequently turned over to the Monrovia City Court.
He pleaded guilty to the crime of extortion but, expressed regret over his action.
He also blamed his action on the economic challenges and skyrocketing poverty in the country.
According to him, he created the fake account, using the Minister’s photos, name and other information where he used to request or demand females to send their nude pictures and videos to him with the intent of extorting money from them.
“I want to say sorry to Deputy Minister Gabriel Sarlee for using his name, information and position to create a fake Facebook account to chat with females. The account that I created was fake but I used it to chat with females by proposing relationships and at the end, I can request their naked pictures and nude videos. My intent was just to get money from them. I don’t really mean this, but it’s the work of the devil. You know things are hard, the economy is not moving and we have to survive,’’ he justified.
Defendant Burphy added that the account was recently created but despite his intent, he was very mindful with his conversation, noting that only one female fell victim to his scam.
Family and other relatives of the defendant have also extended apology to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister for his action, terming it as shameful and disgraceful.
They expressed regret for the embarrassment he has brought to the Deputy Minister.
