A man named Asad Hussain has been jailed after creating a fake Tinder profile in the name of his former girlfriend and using it to encourage men to break into her home and attack her. He was also made subject to a 15-year restraining order.
According to the case, Hussain had been on a number of dates with the victim, but the relationship ended after he became controlling and assaulted her. A few months later, men began turning up at her home, saying she had invited them through the dating app.
At least 18 men are believed to have arrived at the woman's home after receiving messages from the account Hussain had set up. Investigators said the true number remains unknown, but those who came forward told a similar account of being told to let themselves into the property.
On one night alone, several men turned up one after another. Some of the men reported being told not to believe the woman if she objected, and one pushed at her front door, smashing a glass panel, after a message instructed him to do so.
Police said Hussain did not have to approach the victim in person. Instead, he created profiles designed to send strangers to her home, with the aim of making her feel fear. Officers underlined how dangerous the situation was, noting that the woman and her children could have come to serious harm.
The victim had never known Hussain's real name. Police were ultimately able to identify him using footage from her doorbell camera, which allowed them to trace his car registration and link him to the account.
In a further sign of his conduct, Hussain even messaged the victim while posing as one of the men from the dating app, asking whether the police had managed to identify him. He was arrested on a motorway on suspicion of stalking.
Officials described the case as a stark example of how online tools can be misused to orchestrate harassment from a distance, and said it was fortunate that the victim was not physically harmed despite the number of men sent to her door.