British boxer of Pakistani origin Amir Khan who was being blackmailed by a stranger in relation to an alleged sex tape said he was 'happy to drop charges' against the man.

The Daily Mail reported that the boxer was blackmailed by 27-year-old Hamza Din, who emailed Khan's management team claiming to be in possession of a video of Amir Khan with a woman. After the blackmail attempt failed, Din was given a suspended sentence.

The Bolton Crown Court heard that Hamza Din sent an email to Khan's team saying the video showed him and 'a girl' together in a Newcastle hotel room. He threatened to release what he said was '100 per cent real' footage if he did not receive a response.

He demanded money, saying he would release the clip to the media unless the boxer's team was able to 'match the price' the video could fetch, the Mail reported.

The prosecution said that the blackmailer created an email account under the name Harry Dean, but it was traced and he was arrested.

Din pleaded guilty to a single charge of blackmail and was sentenced to 16 months in prison, suspended for two years.

In a statement read to the court, Khan said, "I do not want anyone else to be put in the position that I and my family have been put in".

QC Simon Myersen who was defending Din termed the blackmail attempt 'spectacularly inept'.

He said there was "no such video", and that the incident the boxer was threatened about "did not occur".

Judge Richard Gioserano observed that Din was suffering from undiagnosed and untreated bipolar disorder, and praised Khan's response to the incident.

He added that Din's allegations were "completely baseless".

"When Mr Khan was told, he knew that it could not be true. He was worried about the harm that the mere making of an allegation, though baseless, could cause. It is to his credit that Mr Khan has expressed a wish that he is treated medically rather than be jailed," he said.

The boxer tweeted, "I am happy to drop charges, now it's up to the law."

Opinion

Editorial

Digital growth
Updated 25 Apr, 2024

Digital growth

Democratising digital development will catalyse a rapid, if not immediate, improvement in human development indicators for the underserved segments of the Pakistani citizenry.
Nikah rights
25 Apr, 2024

Nikah rights

THE Supreme Court recently delivered a judgement championing the rights of women within a marriage. The ruling...
Campus crackdowns
25 Apr, 2024

Campus crackdowns

WHILE most Western governments have either been gladly facilitating Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza, or meekly...
Ties with Tehran
Updated 24 Apr, 2024

Ties with Tehran

Tomorrow, if ties between Washington and Beijing nosedive, and the US asks Pakistan to reconsider CPEC, will we comply?
Working together
24 Apr, 2024

Working together

PAKISTAN’S democracy seems adrift, and no one understands this better than our politicians. The system has gone...
Farmers’ anxiety
24 Apr, 2024

Farmers’ anxiety

WHEAT prices in Punjab have plummeted far below the minimum support price owing to a bumper harvest, reckless...