A twisted man who pushed a vulnerable woman to kill herself has been locked up for more than nine years. Tyler Webb met his victim through social media and started asking her to hurt herself for his sick pleasure. The 23-year-old from Loughborough became the first person charged under new online safety laws. Police called the victim incredibly brave for reporting what happened to her.
Webb connected with the woman on a mental health forum and moved their chats to Telegram messaging. He kept asking her to send photos of injuries and wanted to watch her die on a video call. The sick predator spent 44 minutes trying to talk her into ending her life during one call last July. When she refused to go through with it, he threatened to block her from contacting him again.
The victim called police the next day and Webb was arrested at his home. She told the court that Webb tried to murder her with words rather than weapons. The woman said he gave her detailed instructions about how to harm herself and showed no feelings about torturing her. She will live with the trauma for the rest of her life.
Webb suffers from severe autism and other mental health problems that have affected him since childhood. His lawyer said he struggles badly with his conditions but finally receives proper treatment in hospital. The judge gave him a special sentence that starts in a mental health unit and continues in prison if doctors say he can leave.
Webb connected with the woman on a mental health forum and moved their chats to Telegram messaging. He kept asking her to send photos of injuries and wanted to watch her die on a video call. The sick predator spent 44 minutes trying to talk her into ending her life during one call last July. When she refused to go through with it, he threatened to block her from contacting him again.
The victim called police the next day and Webb was arrested at his home. She told the court that Webb tried to murder her with words rather than weapons. The woman said he gave her detailed instructions about how to harm herself and showed no feelings about torturing her. She will live with the trauma for the rest of her life.
Webb suffers from severe autism and other mental health problems that have affected him since childhood. His lawyer said he struggles badly with his conditions but finally receives proper treatment in hospital. The judge gave him a special sentence that starts in a mental health unit and continues in prison if doctors say he can leave.
