Description
A PR cameraman has been sentenced to prison and prohibited from approaching a glamour model from Camden for 12 years following his conviction for secretly recording her during sexual activity.
Naushad Faruk, aged 33 and also known as Johnny Na$h, who appeared as the "Ladies Man" on the BBC3 reality series Boom Town, received a three-and-a-half-year jail term for voyeurism after filming the woman without her knowledge or consent.
The court dismissed his assertion that she had agreed to the recording as a means to advance her modeling career.
In the proceedings, the 26-year-old model, known for her frequent appearances in prominent men's magazines, broke down in tears while describing how Faruk—a PR cameraman she initially encountered through work—developed an intense obsession with her. He showered her with presents, including a purebred Chihuahua, and repeatedly expressed desires to marry and be intimate with her.
Prosecutor Jonathan Loades explained: "He persistently pressured her for sex, but she declined."
The model became aware of his fixation when he got a tattoo of her face on his arm. Testifying from behind a protective screen, she said: "I was terrified. Why would you go to have a tattoo done unless you were completely obsessed?"
She recounted that when she attempted to end their association, Faruk informed her the dog was registered under his name and threatened to reclaim it unless she complied with his sexual demands.
In tears, she told the jury: "When he gave the puppy to me, I obviously became her mother...She was my baby. I was horrified to find out she wasn’t in my name and I realised he had a hook on me. I was so in love with her, he knew I couldn’t be away from her.
“This happened quite a few times and it was very traumatic and I got very depressed.”
Mr. Loades informed the jury that, driven to desperation by the ongoing harassment, she eventually negotiated an agreement allowing him to perform a sex act on her.
Jurors viewed a 40-minute video from the summer of 2012, depicting Faruk positioning the hidden camera, the model's arrival, and the subsequent sexual encounter.
Mr. Loades noted: "She was unaware of the camera and had she been asked, she would have said ‘no’."
He further described how, after the event, Faruk persisted in bothering her, prompting her to sever all ties. Shortly thereafter, he forwarded her a YouTube link to the unauthorized footage, accompanied by the message: “No one has seen this yet. What happens next is up to you.”
Faruk was imprisoned for three and a half years after a guilty verdict on one count of voyeurism involving the model, spanning August 1 to September 30, 2012.
He was additionally found guilty on two other voyeurism counts for using concealed cameras to film another model and an escort without their permission between 2013 and 2014.
Faruk was acquitted of two fraud charges concerning an alleged fabricated photoshoot for Loaded magazine, which he had contested.
He was convicted on two counts of perverting the course of justice for posting the real and professional names of two key victims on Twitter, in violation of a court anonymity order.
In addition to his sentence, Faruk received a 12-year restraining order preventing contact with the victims and was required to register as a sex offender.
Detective Constable Rob Jones, the investigating officer, stated post-trial: “This case shows that if someone threatens to release ‘revenge porn’ into the public domain they will be dealt with robustly, not only by the police but also by the courts as is demonstrated by this sentence.”
“The women involved have been extremely traumatised and felt extreme fear throughout,” he continued.
Detective Chief Inspector Andrew Packer of Camden police remarked: “The filming of women engaging in sexual acts is extremely disturbing when you consider that they had no idea they were being secretly filmed.”