William Kirkpatrick, 27, from Glasgow, has avoided jail after admitting to duping top Premier League and Championship footballers into sending him naked pictures. He pretended to be a fellow player to convince the stars into sending X-rated photos of themselves to him.
How the scam unfolded
Kirkpatrick messaged a Sheffield Wednesday player on WhatsApp, claiming the star could be added to the team group chat if he sent two naked photos. The unsuspecting victim was then asked to provide the phone numbers of other players. Kirkpatrick later targeted a Nottingham Forest player, sending a message that said: "I've got your welcome forfeit. Slips or birthday suit."
Police were alerted when the Sheffield Wednesday player's teammates told him they were not behind the messages. The Forest player believed the message was real and was "frightened and worried about the impact on his career," leading to a second report to police.
Police investigation
Officers from Police Scotland raided Kirkpatrick's then home in Ayr and seized an iPhone containing the naked pictures sent by both players, who cannot be identified for legal reasons. No evidence suggested Kirkpatrick had shared or sold any of the images.
Kirkpatrick appeared at Ayr Sheriff Court and admitted two charges of fraud. His twisted behaviour spanned between June and July 2024.
Sentence and consequences
Sheriff Siobhan Connelly ordered Kirkpatrick to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and tagged him for two months as a direct alternative to prison. He will also be under supervision for three years. Prosecutors successfully argued that the scam had a "significant sexual element," and Kirkpatrick was placed on the sex offenders' register for five years.
Defence lawyer Quentin Muir said: "These offences are very unusual and relate to professional footballers. The background to the deception being that the accused sent messages to them claiming he was another professional footballer and invited them to send what you might call initiation photos. There was no financial gain from this and it does seem somewhat odd that people with such public profiles would have correspondence without any form of investigation but that is where we are. He did this for his own sexual gratification but there has been no attempt to publish these images. The social work report narrates his shame and regret at his involvement in this."
Sheriff Connelly told Kirkpatrick: "It is a serious offence and looking at culpability you are entirely to blame for this and seemed to be involved in a fairly extensive scheme where you identified and managed to get the telephone numbers of these individuals and then sent these messages. It caused them significant harm and distress. This is the type of offence which could attract a custodial sentence but I do consider that in terms of rehabilitation that it might be more appropriate to impose a high-tariff community disposal."
Kirkpatrick was warned that if he breached any of the court orders, he would be sent to jail.
