[imagesource: Zanele Zulu / ANA]

Having somebody send Nando’s that you didn’t order to your house sounds tame, but when it’s part of a larger pattern of harassment, it can take its toll.

That’s what Andy Hingdebi found out over a period of months last year during South Africa’s stricter lockdown period, with him and his family tormented by a cyberbully who tried to extort and threaten his victims.

Last week, 23-year-old Dharmesh Singh (shielding his face in the image above) pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted extortion and accepted the two-year jail sentence or a R60 000 fine, after appearing at the Durban Regional Court.

Singh, who lives next door to Hingdebi, spent months using an assumed name to send threats, and even went as far as to threaten the safety of Hingdebi’s family.

IOL reporting below:

Hingdebi said Singh [pictured below, in an image from his Facebook profile] was relentless in his harassment over several months, beginning in March.

Using unregistered sim cards, Singh was able to create fake social media accounts. Singh used Facebook messenger to demand R50 000 in cash from Hingdebi.

Singh asked Hingdebi to place the money in the postbox at the front of his house and he would collect it.

Failing which, Singh threatened to send e-hailing services to Hingdebi’s house, kill him, rape his wife, kill the security guard he had hired, and rob their home.

Sometimes, when Hingdebi left his home, he would receive messages about his wife and two children being home alone.

Then there were the e-hailing cabs and the food deliveries:

Hingdebi counted, during the period in question, approximately 700 e-hailing cabs from all the major service providers arriving at his front gate without him requesting them.

“On some days, as many as 40 cars were sent to my home. On a quiet day, that number would be about 20. There were times when four cabs showed-up simultaneously.”

Once he got this message: “… are you enjoying the taxis?”

In some instances, he turned away deliveries of Nando’s chicken.

As I said earlier, Nando’s deliveries you didn’t order is annoying, but as part of a larger picture, it’s genuine harassment.

Finally, in June, even though he had never had an altercation with Singh or his family, Hingdebi figured out that his neighbour was responsible for the threats.

According to attorney Verlie Oosthuizen, who specialises in cybercrime matters, the conviction sets a welcome legal precedent, with online harassment notoriously difficult to prosecute.

Singh will avoid the fine and the jail sentence, provided he is not convicted of similar crimes over the next five years.

Seems like he got off lightly, but I suppose it’s a start.

[source:iol]