After scamming gay men for over half a decade, Tyler Buchanan, 28, now faces up to 10 years in prison.
Buchanan pleaded guilty to using Craigslist and other websites to place ads offering gay sex services and blackmail respondents out of roughly $250,000.
Related: Inside the $125,000 gay prison dating scam targeting straight men
Using the name “Thuler O’Naill” (there’s got to be a story behind that name…), Buchanan purchased over 1,300 ads on Craigslist, Backpage and other sites, targeting gay men primarily in the Los Angeles, but also in other cities and states, according to The Santa Monica Mirror.
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Once someone responded to his ad, Buchanan would search for personal information on the victim, send sexts, arrange for payment in exchange for sex, then threaten to make the messages public and report the victim to police for solicitation unless they agreed to pay him a monthly fee between $100 and $4,000. It sounds like quite an ugly enterprise.
Related: Guys warn prospective sugar baby that he’s probably getting scammed
On Wednesday he pleaded guilty to federal felony charges using an interstate facility to facilitate an unlawful activity, transmitting threatening communications with intent to extort, receiving and disposing of proceeds of extortion and criminal forfeiture.
Buchanan was deemed a flight risk and will remain behind bars until his sentencing hearing on May 11.
Chrisk
Half a decade? Sounds like he also targeted closet cases.
justgeo
Why not ship him off to some Island like Hatti?
nm4047
I guess I didn’t read between the lines, that this guy is Haitian, will assume until shown otherwise that he is a US citizen and as such the responsibility of the US legal system not another sovereign states’ cost burden. If someone pays for 10years then, they also, should to take some responsibility. I don’t care if they’re closeted, they could still approach legal representatives etc.
Kangol2
First, what’s “Hatti”? Second, Haiti isn’t an entire island, but constitutes one-third of Hispaniola, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Lastly, what makes you think Haiti would take this person? He committed crimes in the US so he should serve time here.
Man About Town
Is that an island named after Ms. McDaniel?
C_Alan
The picture associated with this article doesn’t reflect the content of the article. Ok this is a stretch but maybe the picture is indicating the activity you’re being scammed out of?
ShiningSex
That’s why one should be OUT. Creeps like this wouldn’t get away with this crap.
Also, why aren’t these men worried about STDs in responding to craiglist hookups.
Very risky. Yes, I know it can happen with anyone (not just Craiglists or Grindr), but the risk seems to be higher there.
Granny Spoth
You cannot stop living because of the risk of diseases, sexual or not, or injuries in the real world.
I am not an advocate for complete lack of sexual integrity, but people need to ease up on STD demonization.
Shit happens.
A disease is a disease.
jsteinbee
He got what he got I say make pay each person he scam then lock him up
iminheatlikeacat
Far too many people on the internet are completely clueless and stories like this show it. If someone was using Craigslist m2m for random hooks ups then what on Earth were they doing or telling this guy that he was able to scam them out of hundreds of dollars? It was for hook ups not for romance. You don’t need to give your real name, you don’t need to meet at your house, you don’t need to send nude photos, you don’t need to send your Facebook or Instagram, you don’t need to have anything identifiable via your email address. I used Craigslist for years and have, funnily enough, never come across this sort of problem, even with guys who turned out to be timewasters.