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Kimberley first encountered Declan Guess when she was just 15 years old, attending the same school as him. Although Guess later left mainstream education due to his anxiety, the two reconnected online via Facebook. After chatting for about five months, they met again and began a relationship. However, within a week, Guess’s behavior took a dark turn, initiating a prolonged campaign of online stalking and harassment that would continue for nearly a decade. This campaign eventually escalated to troubling incidents, including random men showing up uninvited at Kimberley’s family home, expecting “fun and sex.”
Throughout her teenage years, Kimberley endured relentless online abuse, initially receiving messages of admiration from fake accounts that soon grew increasingly sexual and coercive. These fabricated profiles pressured the then-underage Kimberley to send explicit photos and videos under threats of exposure. “I didn’t know it was [Guess] harassing me through fake accounts,” she explained. Despite confiding in Guess about the abuse, he manipulated her to stay silent and comply with the demands. At the same time, he used emotional tactics, threatening self-harm if Kimberley tried to end their relationship. Kimberley reflected, “At the time he was comforting me, but he was actually encouraging it as well.”
As the abuse wore on, Kimberley’s health deteriorated significantly. She revealed that her weight dropped to around six stone, and she even attempted suicide. Guess intervened during this attempt but continued the harassment nonetheless. Kimberley’s family, once they became aware of the online attacks, began to suspect Guess’s involvement. Although initially in disbelief, Kimberley’s suspicions were confirmed when they asked her to withhold information about a new fake account contacting her, and Guess unwittingly revealed he knew about it. After ending the year-long relationship, Kimberley faced further harassment, with intimate images shared publicly and her family subjected to threats through thousands of fake accounts. The abuse extended beyond her to workplaces and local venues she hadn’t even visited.
Kimberley’s mother, Sally, spoke about the distressing impact on the family. Strange men started arriving at their home seeking Kimberley, including one who left an explicit handwritten letter, clearly expressing his intentions. “When Kimberley’s dad got home, we checked the CCTV, which showed him coming to the house. I made a report to the police,” Sally said. Despite police involvement, the harassment persisted, with visitors even attempting to disguise their purpose. Eventually, Sally confronted one visitor, who shockingly showed her multiple online platforms where Kimberley was advertised as a prostitute, alongside images of their home and explicit personal information. Further investigation revealed that Guess was responsible for many of the fake profiles, and his devices contained thousands of illicit images.
Authorities arrested Guess in Lincolnshire last year, discovering over 500 indecent images involving children across his devices, including material involving Kimberley and other victims. In August, the courts issued a stalking protection order banning any form of contact between Guess and Kimberley. Despite this, he breached the order by following her on Instagram and was subsequently subjected to additional restraining and sexual harm prevention orders, as well as placement on the sex offenders register. Police officer PC Kate Butler emphasized the severity of the impact on Kimberley and urged other potential victims to come forward. Kimberley expressed the difficulty in rebuilding trust after such trauma but hopes sharing
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