MANTI TE'O - SMELLS 'CATFISH'-Y

(U.S.A.) Manti Te'o, the US college footballer revealed to have been conducting a relationship with a fake online girlfiend, has denied that he was involved in the hoax.

In his first interview since the revelations, the Notre Dame linebacker told the sports network ESPN that there was "no way" he could have been involved in prepetrating the scam.

There had been speculation that Te'o was involved in the hoax: the "girlfriend" was revealed to have died hours shortly after the death of his grandmother. Despite the apparent double tragedy, Te'o went on to play the game of his life when Notre Dame beat Michigan State 20-3.

It has been suggested that he was involved in creating the story in order to perpetrate a media-friendly myth to assist his Heisman Trophy candidacy.

But in a two-and-a-half hour interview with ESPN, conducted off camera, Te'o said he was the victim of the hoax: "When they hear the facts they'll know. They'll know there is no way I could be a part of this."

The comments were Te'o's first public remarks since Deadspin.com reported that his girlfriend not only did not die but, in fact, never existed. Notre Dame and Te'o insist he was the victim of a cruel joke.

According to a report of the interview on ESPN's website, it appears that Te'o concocted an elaborate story to hide the fact that he had not physically met the woman, known as Lennay Kekua. He lied to his father about the affair, who then told reporters that the pair had met. Te'o now says he never met the woman.

On the occasions they talked on video chat online, the woman never activated her camera. Te'o admitted to meeting Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, a man believed to be behind the hoax, but said he did not know of the scam.

"I even knew that it was crazy that I was with somebody that I didn't meet," he told ESPN. "And that alone people find out that this girl who died I was so invested in, and I didn't meet her as well."

Before Friday night, Te'o's only statement was to declare his embarassment at the Deadspin revelations. "This is incredibly embarrassing to talk about, but over an extended period of time, I developed an emotional relationship with a woman I met online. We maintained what I thought to be an authentic relationship by communicating frequently online and on the phone, and I grew to care deeply about her.

"To realize that I was the victim of what was apparently someone's sick joke and constant lies was, and is, painful and humiliating." 


ORIGINAL ARTICLE FOUND HERE

FOR HOW RELATIONSHIPS LIKE THIS ARE ACCOMPLISHED BY THE SCAMMER - Click Here 


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6 MONTHS FOR CRIMINAL CYBER HARASSMENT OF HIS EX

by Sam Pazzano

(CANADA) A Toronto osteopath who sought to ruin his former mistress' life by disseminating pornographic shots and videos to her family, friends and church pals was slapped Friday with a blended six-month conditional sentence.

Justice Peter Harris handed Oleg Korbut a mixture of house arrest to be served Monday through Friday -- which enables him to keep working and supporting his wife and six-month-old son -- plus 90 days of weekends in jail, starting next Friday night.

Harris was sentencing Korbut, 43, for criminal harassment plus stealing his now 30-year-old lover's cellphone and diary in January 2010.

While the judge said this sentence would signal that the "theft of one's most private and personal information will not be tolerated," he tempered the six-month sentence -- by making it conditional, instead of six months of straight jail time -- so that Korbut could keep supporting his family.

The victim's embarrassing videos on the internet cannot be retrieved, so her suffering and embarrassment may never end, the judge sadly noted.

"Unquestionably, Mr. Korbut's premeditated, escalating campaign in the form of deliberate, callous and vindictive harassment has had a profound and devastating impact on Ms. K's reputation, her integrity and her self-worth," the judge said. The victim cannot be legally identified.

Korbut -- who had taken sexual photos and videos of the victim during their two-year relationship which he ended in late 2009 -- stole her cell-phone and diary in January 2010 after she revealed she was seeing another man. Korbut had forbade her from doing so for a year or more.

The Ukrainian-educated medical doctor became enraged and then distributed those images to the e-mail addresses of her family, friends and church-going pals. He also started posting her on on-line dating websites between Feb. 16, and March 6 2010.

Korbut also dropped off a "Valentine's Day" gift of a sexually explicit DVD at the home of the woman's new boyfriend on Feb. 14, 2010.

Korbut "was unable to restrain his scornful attitude towards Ms. K., and referred to her as a ‘whore' and ‘f---ing scum' while testifying in his own defence," Harris noted. "He lacks insight and respect for others. . his unbalanced perspective on gender equality and sensitivity was apparent."

Korbut is a first-time offender who enjoys a solid reputation and solid support in the community and represents a low risk to re-offend, Harris said.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE FOUND HERE