Ahmed Jalal

A blackmailer who deliberately targeted a vulnerable teenage girl and threatened to release indecent photographs of her has been jailed for four years.

Ahmed Jalal, 24, of Grove Street, Hull, left the child terrified, causing substantial distress and having what a judge described as a “hugely detrimental effect” on her.

Jalal denied blackmail, two offences of taking indecent photographs of a child and possessing indecent photographs of a child with a view to distributing them.

A jury at Grimsby Crown Court convicted him of all four offences on September 4, following a trial concerning offending in Cleethorpes.

Sentencing him at Hull Crown Court, Judge John Thackray KC said Jalal knew the girl would struggle to cope with his threats and would find it difficult to confide in her family. The abuse eventually came to police attention after she told friends.

The judge said Jalal had “essentially admitted” the offences while giving evidence, despite denying the charges. “You targeted a particularly vulnerable victim,” he told him. “It caused substantial distress to this young girl.”

Jalal, who had no previous convictions, represented himself at trial and sentencing after his lawyers withdrew. He offered nothing in mitigation.

Alongside his four-year prison sentence, Jalal received a 10-year sexual harm prevention order and a five-year restraining order. He must register as a sex offender indefinitely.