Footy great Beau Ryan reveals he knows the NRL star who fell victim to nude pic sextortion attempt
Rugby league star and current media personality Beau Ryan claims to know the identity of the player at the center of the attempted nude sextortion.
An NRL star who was blackmailed over a lewd image he posted to a catfish social media account was forced to send frantic texts to friends and relatives to inform them of the situation.
The Sydney player, who is single, sent a nude photo to a social media account.
Whoever was behind the account then threatened that they would send the photo to the star’s friends and family if he didn’t wire $5,000, according to the The Sydney Morning Herald.
But the player refused to be blackmailed and the account duly sent the image to several of his friends and loved ones.
Speaking to Kyle and Jackie O on the KIIIS network on Friday morning, Ryan confirmed he was aware of the NRL star’s identity.
“I haven’t seen the photo, but I do know who it is,” he said.
Beau joked that his wife Kara (pictured together) threatens to release nudes of him ‘all the time’ but never follows through
KIIS radio stars Kyle and Jackie O grilled Ryan about the incident and tried to get him to release the player’s name
However, Ryan’s mate then sent a middle name, causing confusion and the reason why the former Wests Tigers and Cronulla Sharks winger refuses to identify them.
‘I sent [a message] to my mate β¦ who asked who this is β¦ and he sent me back two names,β he said.
“He sent one back, and then he said wait a minute, I think it’s this guy.”
“So I’m not quite sure, it would be wrong to say.”
Ryan did defend the player, while condemning the person responsible for the extortion attempt.
“What happened is he’s talking to someone online and she sent a picture and he sent one back,” he said.
“It’s mutual agreement. What she did, that’s revenge porn.
“If the boot was on the other foot and the rugby league guy put it on the girl, it got a lot more serious. ‘
The hosts then joked that the player could be 63-year-old Canberra Raiders legend Mal Meninga.
“It’s not Mal Meninga,” Ryan said.
The player at the center of the racketeering attempt is based in Sydney and currently playing in the NRL, while Meninga is a proud Queenslander and has long been retired.
When the panel asked Ryan if women had ever tried to blackmail him in the past, he joked that his wife Kara had also threatened to release his nudes.
“My wife threatens me all the time,” he laughed.
The player was forced to send text messages to friends and relatives warning them of the blackmail attempt
Police told the club they believe the account was someone overseas trying to extort the NRL player
Panicked, he told his club who in turn contacted the police. They recommended that he tell his friends to report the account for sexual harassment.
The star also called his parents to explain the predicament.
βHey, this is crazy awkward, but [account holder] sends a picture of my d*** around to get money from me and send it to you,” the player said in a private message to one of his friends on Monday.
‘Could you report them for sexual harassment? Can help. Sorry about this (sic) but would be much appreciated x.’
Police told the club they believe the account was someone overseas trying to extort the NRL player. The account has now been closed.
“The matter has been reported to the police and the relevant social media companies,” a club spokesperson told The Sydney Morning Herald.
It is important to note that the player is the victim here. It seems that incidents like this are a regular occurrence among people across society.β
It comes just a week after dozens of AFL players were caught up in another nude photo scandal that rocked Australian sport.
A Google drive contains a list of player names with folders of images claiming to be them
A massive leak of private and personal images allegedly showing more than 45 current and former AFL players is being investigated by the league and police.
A Google Drive file has been shared claiming to contain images of stars past and present, with screenshots, photos and videos claiming to be of AFL players, including Brownlow Medalists.
A number of clubs reportedly contacted the AFL when the footage began to circulate.
The police are investigating the incident.
“A lot of work appears to have gone into collecting the images and creating files for distribution,” an AFL statement said.
“The AFL has no information as to why the personal images were illegally distributed without permission or what the motive is.”