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Behind the OnlyFans porn boom: Allegations of rape, abuse, and betrayal
Story: [ON-SCREEN WARNING: This video contains graphic language, details and images which some viewers may find distressing.]Apleyona: “He took out his phone to record.” Sammy: “A company witnessed me being raped.” Falzone: “OnlyFans directly interacts with people who are breaking the law.” We're affiliated with you.'' Amanda: “Do I just have to get naked for you to believe in my naked body?'' ” Michaelson: “I shouldn't have posted that video” Reporter: This is a story about OnlyFans, a popular adult-only website where anyone can sell sexually explicit videos of themselves. However, this platform also has a dark side. It has become a home for non-consensual pornography. And to make matters worse for Sammy, a video of her alleged rape was leaked. Sammy: I met Gene on the dating app BLK.[DATE: July 13, 2022VIDEO SOURCE: Miami-Dade Police DeptCAPTION: Linda So, Reuters]Reporter: In April 2022, Sammy, a college student in Florida, started talking to a man named Gene on a dating app. Gene's real name is Benji Charles. Sammy: “He called me that night so I could go to his house and hang out with his friends.” Reporter: When she met Benjy and got into his car, She says her friend, Michaelson Romels, was in the passenger seat. . Sammy: “I'm driving home to Jean's house. In my head, I was expecting more people.” Reporter: But when Sammy entered the apartment, she said there was no one else there. Sammy said she felt uncomfortable but tried to remain calm. After drinking and dancing, Sammy said the atmosphere changed and the men became sexually aggressive. [DATE: July 13, 2022VIDEO SOURCE: Miami-Dade Police Dept]Sammy: Michaelson came up behind me and tried to penetrate my anus, so I told him to stop. He slapped me in the face. They put me in different positions and took turns. Jean got off me and I remember feeling like she was done. And I get ready to walk out. I told him to take me to my friend's workplace. Detective: Did you get back in the car and tell him to take you to your friend's work? And will they take you? So do they let you off? Sammy: I let a friend know that I think they were recording me. He followed Michaelson's profile, and like his… profile, there were links, one of which was to his OnlyFans. Reporter: Reuters was able to obtain a screenshot of the alleged rape video posted to OnlyFans through a public records request. Sammy: Ever since that happened, I've been lost. A company saw me being raped and made money off of it. They watched me get destroyed and took the check. Reporter: A Reuters investigation found that between 2019 and 2023, there were at least 128 cases in which people filed complaints with U.S. law enforcement about explicit images or videos of themselves being posted on OnlyFans without their consent. The incident has been identified. [UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: His OnlyFans page which had explicit photos of myself.]Reporter: In response to Reuters' findings, an OnlyFans spokesperson said that in “the few instances where malicious actors have abused our platform,” OnlyFans “quickly removes content, bans users, and investigates.” and actively supported the prosecution.”[CAPTION: Amanda Dicrosta, Florida]Amanda: “Mike and I had been going back and forth for months. Trying to rekindle our relationship… He and I had sex. At one point I realized he was recording me. I found out and asked him to stop.'' Reporter: Amanda DiClosta told police, “I didn't know that my ex-boyfriend was posting sex videos online. -McFarland is a former NFL player for the Indianapolis Colts.The two started dating in 2019 after meeting in Florida.Amanda: My ex.'' I think Mike was watching us on social media or something and found his private Twitter account with Onlyfans attached. I didn't know what he was saying, so he started sending me screenshots and was like, oh, you. “Didn't know about this? I called Mike and he dropped them right away. He didn't come hard on me about it, so I never went forward with the charges. You know. , he was the one who took them down, no questions asked.''One day, I was sitting outside after work, and just like this, a light bulb went off in my head. So I thought, oh my god, what if he posts a video again? There were all my old videos from when we were together, and then the videos he took of me after we broke up and rekindled things. The second time, only the video didn't show my face. Reporter: Rumors spread among her family and friends that she was apparently doing porn on OnlyFans. Amanda: That was a really difficult time in my life. It's too much judgment from people who thought I was different, who didn't care to listen to my opinion and assumed I was doing porn now. It was really, really humiliating. I finally drove to Tampa and went to the police. Honestly, I was hoping they would take me seriously. Of course he's a male police officer. As most of them do. So, again, I just take my sex video and show it to more people and have them turn around and say there's nothing I can do. Reporter: According to the police incident report, after investigators consulted with police, the State Attorney's Office determined that the case could not be prosecuted because her video contained no information specifically identifying her. I told Amanda. Amanda: I have all the clothes you see in the video. I literally have everything to this day and hope that one day I can go to court and say, look, this was my underwear and this was my dress. [CAPTION: Mary Anne Franks, George Washington Univ. Law School professor]Mary Ann Franks: When you're the target of this kind of abuse, it's very difficult to get rid of it. It is difficult to erase the image itself. It's difficult to erase that influence. The ultimate goal should be deterrence. Please stop people from doing this in the first place. Reporter: To protect herself in the future, Amanda got a tattoo on her back. Amanda: My body doesn't belong to you. You have no right to any part of it. Not a video or a photo of it. It was kind of my way of helping myself and protecting myself if something like this happened again.[CAPTION: Adreiona Prater, Texas]ADREIONA: Most people would say I was a shy and innocent person. After graduating from high school, the next step was to attend college. I wanted to be a criminal lawyer. Reporter: Adreiona Prater met Anthony Scott while attending college in Texas in July 2019, and they dated briefly. Adreiona: One day I was at home. When I went outside to get the trash, he was walking his dog and noticed me and knocked on his door and asked for my number. And from there we started dating. Reporter: She says they became romantically involved that summer and had sex at her apartment. Adreiona: He pulled out his phone to record it and I was like, no, no, I'm not going to do this. And he's like, I promise, I'll delete it later. Reporter: But in fact, she says, he didn't delete the video. A few months later, Adreiona discovered that Anthony had posted it on OnlyFans and other platforms. ADREIONA: It's been crazy since that day. A lot of people contacted me. I stopped going to class. I could not do it. I couldn't do it anymore. It felt like my life was over. Reporter: In June 2022, Anthony pleaded guilty to violating Texas' revenge porn law and received three years of community supervision. Anthony told Reuters he had done nothing wrong and he declined to discuss other details about the incident. Sammy: I'll never give up on music, I'll never give up on singing, I'll never give up on writing. Those are the few things that no one can take away from me. [SINGING MIXED IN] Yes, I have chosen to live on after this, but what should I do?[DATE: July 26, 2022VIDEO SOURCE: Miami-Dade Police Dept]Detective: Can you pronounce the name below? Romels: Michelson Detective: And what's your last name? Romels: Romels. Detective: These are constitutional rights given to you by the United States, right? Reporter: Sammy's alleged perpetrators, Michaelson Romels and Benji Charles, are scheduled to stand trial later this year on charges of sexual assault and distribution of obscene material. Both deny the charges and maintain their innocence. Detective: Do you record everything you do sexually… Romels: Yes, yes, everything. Detective: With a different woman? Romerus: Yes, sir. Detective: Do they know they are being recorded? Romels: Yeah. she knows. I got it. Detective: Are you guys just doing something? Romels: Well, whenever I have sex with someone, I always film it. This is…a one-time experience. Detective: Is it like a trophy? Romeras: Well, basically, but not really. Detective: What about the audio? Detective: This young woman ended up in the hospital. Yeah. And after she arrived at the hospital, she filed a police report. She said she never consented to any sexual activity with you. Detective: Did you know this is on her OnlyFans page? It's on social media. It's on social media. That's how we got it. That's how we got it. Benji: I didn't know that. Detective: Someone is profiting from it. Someone is making money. Please stop this. Benji: Michaelson. Is it Michelson? Detective: There are several ways a video can be published on the Internet. Your phone, his phone, or a ghost. Reporter: Apart from the criminal case, Sammy is suing her attacker and OnlyFans suspects in federal court. [CAPTION: Todd Falzone, Sammy’s lawyer]Falzone: I'm Todd Falzone. I am a partner at the Kelly Ustal Law Offices in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. And I will be representing Sammy in this matter. OnlyFans works directly with people who violate the law. Funds were flowing into her OnlyFans account as profits from the rape video. Sammy's case is one of the first to hold companies that clearly benefit from partnering with people who engage in acts of sex trafficking, sexual violence, and sexual exploitation. Reporter: In response to this lawsuit, OnlyFans' U.S. subsidiary, Fenix Internet, said it would seek to have the lawsuit dismissed. The company says it is not liable for content posted by users because free speech is protected. Sammy: I think my story, at least in that chapter, allows everyone to go back to their place. That's what brought me back to my senses. Those two in prison. Romels: “I shouldn't have posted that video.” Sammy: And OnlyFans is being held responsible.
