A scheming saleswoman blackmailed her wealthy married former boss by threatening to tell his wife about their affair.
Faye Main, 26, demanded thousands off her ex-lover warning she would disclose their five-month relationship unless he met her pay-out deadline, a court in Hampshire heard.
She kept hold of private messages and explicit photos of the businessman three years after their affair, saying she would ‘have a chat’ with his wife if he did not hand over £7,000.
The woman has now been handed a suspended sentence after admitting to blackmail and revenge porn for passing on an X rated photo of her former boss to his wife.
Winchester Crown Court heard how Main, who told the businessman ‘what have I got to lose?’, was ‘completely unsophisticated’ in her blackmail.
The scornful perpetrator had initially asked her former boss to set a price himself as she could not decide how much she wanted.
Prosecutor Russell Pyne explained: ‘For a period of some months, he and the defendant engaged in an affair.
‘The affair ended and the two remained amicable up until when it appears she left the employment.’
Faye Main outside Basingstoke Magistrates Court, Hants. The scheming saleswoman blackmailed her wealthy married former boss by threatening to tell his wife about their affair
Faye Main, 26, demanded thousands off her ex-lover and warned she would disclose their five-month relationship unless he met her deadline
Main, of Fleet, Hants, fell victim to a scam and got in touch with her old boss – who she was not in regular contact with – to ask if he would send her money.
However, he declined and told her to go to the police.
Months later, Main messaged him ‘out of the blue’ to blackmail him.
She said: ‘What would you do for me to delete…’
Attached to the message were screenshots showing the beginnings of their conversations on WhatsApp from when they started their affair.
The confused businessman initially replied saying ‘huh?’, then said ‘why are you asking me now, what’s up?’
Main told him she did not disclose it at the time, but said previously his wife had messaged her because she suspected they had an affair.
She claimed she had played it down to his wife at the time, but threatened him ‘maybe we should have the chat’.
Winchester Crown Court (pictured) heard how Main, who told the businessman ‘what have I got to lose?’, was ‘completely unsophisticated’ in her blackmail
The 26-year-old also told her former boss she wanted ‘to see if you would do anything to have it deleted…. to pay out’, and ‘if I messaged her now what have I got to lose? Absolutely nothing’.
She added: ‘Damn right I want a pay out for all the s*** I had to do and let’s face it, you’re good for it.’
Her former boss replied: ‘I’m not sure why three years later you wish to blackmail me’ and ‘you’re serious then? You actually want money for this or you are going to message [his wife]?’
When he asked ‘how much have you decided it’s worth?’, Main replied saying ‘the question is how much do you think it’s worth?’
Eventually, he told her ‘usually’ it’s the blackmailer that sets the price and she suggested £7,000.
Prosecutor Mr Pyne explained how by the deadline, the businessman had stood his ground.
He said: ‘He decided not to send the defendant the £7,000 and Main did send intimate photos to his wife.
‘She gave details of the affair and sent a number of photos including one sent by the victim showing the tip of his penis, which she retained and sent to his wife.’
In a victim impact statement, the businessman said the blackmail had a ‘devastating’ impact on his life and he suffered ‘physical and mental’ illnesses.
He said he didn’t sleep at night and became ‘withdrawn while struggling to come to terms with what happened’.
The former boss added: ‘While I take responsibility for my actions, the way in which this came out caused huge damage to my home life.
‘It was unwarranted and unfair.
‘The level of personal betrayal by Faye Main to reward herself financially has made me question my own judgement of characters.
‘I wish I never met her.’
Main admitted blackmail and sharing a photograph or film of person in intimate state intending to cause alarm distress or humiliation, known as revenge porn.
Amanda Hamilton, defending, said Main’s blackmail was ‘completely unsophisticated’.
‘This offence was between two clearly hurt people’, she explained.
‘She plucked a figure out of the air when he said to her “it doesn’t work like that”.
‘It was very foolhardy and she was not the only one responsible for the affair.’
She added: ‘Faye Main felt like she was being judged [by the victim’s wife] and felt like her ex-lover was not.
‘She’s very remorseful and it’s out of character.’
Sentencing, Judge Adam Feest KC gave her a 16 month sentence suspended for two years, ordered her to do 100 hours unpaid work, and ordered that she has a curfew from 8pm to 6am for three months.
She must complete 15 rehab days and was made subject to a Prohibited Steps order preventing her from contacting her former boss or his wife.
Judge Feest KC said: ‘Blackmail is a nasty offence.
‘To threaten somebody else to reveal personal details to their family is a very unpleasant offence.’
Main, who lives with her boyfriend, is now a sales administrator at a refrigeration company. Staff at the firm provided testimonies on her behalf.
