Fiend who urged vulnerable woman to attempt suicide in video calls for his sexual pleasure is jailed in landmark case
Tyler Webb met his victim, who was then aged 21, in an online forum dedicated to mental health and began grooming her.
The 23-year-old persuaded the woman to seriously self-harm and convinced her to send a photograph of her injuries.
Webb also tried to convince his victim to take her own life in a video call but the suicide attempt failed.
He has now been jailed for nine years and four months but was handed a hybrid order, meaning he will begin his sentence in hospital until he is deemed fit for prison.
Webb was the first person in the country to be charged with encouraging serious self-harm online under Section 184 of the Online Safety Act 2023.
He pleaded guilty to that charge and a separate charge of encouraging suicide between June 22 and July 11 last year.
Judge Timothy Spencer KC agreed that "very largely" Webb was motivated by sexual gratification.
Leicester Crown Court heard after the pair first met on the forum, they began using the Telegram app for "dark" conversations.
Over a six-week period, Webb repeatedly told her she had nothing to live for and gave her methods to take her own life.
In one 44-minute phone call, he persistently tried to get the woman to kill herself.
When she made clear she was not going to do so, Webb then threatened to move on to another woman instead.
Prosecutor Louise Oakley said that when Webb encouraged her to harm herself, "in (the victim's) words, he loved it. Tyler Webb told her it turned him on".
She continued: "He told her he wanted her to do it during a video call so he could watch.
"He would berate her and say she had nothing to live for and she should die."
After the woman's failed suicide attempt, she contacted police as she feared Webb would persuade someone else to harm themself.
Webb was arrested a week later at his home in Loughborough in July 2024.
Police found his user profile on Reddit - called u/EmpathicNarcissist - that showed disturbing images of anime characters with fatal injuries.
In a victim impact statement, the woman said: "I don't want to call this encouraging serious self-harm or suicide, I want to call this what it is - an attempted murder through psychological means.
"What Tyler did was not a mistake, it was calculated psychological violence. He didn't try to kill me with his hands but with his words.
"He had no turmoil while torturing me. He told me that my only value was in dying for his entertainment.
"I'm alive, but the life I have left is altered forever. My life is ruined - my mind and body have been severely damaged."
The court heard Webb has been diagnosed with mental health disorders including autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and anxiety and depressive disorders.
His defence barrister Joey Kwong said Webb was in a "dark time" with his mental health and "wrongly he adopted such warped behaviour and distorted thinking" from material he saw online.
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide
It doesn't discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It's the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes.
And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet it's rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun launched the You're Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let's all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others… You're Not Alone.
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
CALM, www.thecalmzone.net, 0800 585 858
Heads Together, www.headstogether.org.uk
HUMEN www.wearehumen.org
Mind, www.mind.org.uk, 0300 123 3393
Papyrus, www.papyrus-uk.org, 0800 068 41 41
Samaritans, www.samaritans.org, 116 123
Detective Constable Lauren Hampton, of Leicestershire Police, said: "This case is not only truly shocking but also deeply concerning.
"Webb preyed upon a vulnerable woman at a time when she was reaching out to people in an online forum for help and support.
"He quickly gained her trust and then he began with his barrage of vile requests - all the time knowing that what he was telling her to do could result in her ending her own life.
"Thankfully, this did not happen, and the victim was able to report what had happened."
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.
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