A Facebook troll who frequently harassed women on the social networking site faces up to three years in jail for his online comments.
25-year-old Australian man Zane Alchin was taken to court in October of last year, after sending rape threats and abusive comments to women over the internet. The comments were made on a screenshot of a woman’s Tinder bio in August 2015, which was reportedly posted by an anti-feminist Facebook page. After the woman’s friends began defending her in comments section beneath the post, the court heard that Alchin called them “sluts” before posting several more graphic statements.
New Matilda reported that Alchin told the women: “You know the best thing about a feminist they don’t get any action so when you rape them it feels 100 times tighter.” He added: “If anything you’ve proven the only thing good about a women’s mouth is useful for is to get face fucked till she turns blue then have a man hot load straight down it.” He also made another reference to rape, writing: “I’d rape you if you were better looking but I wouldn’t fuck you a nimbus.”
A screenshot of the comments that led to Zane Alchin’s arrest. (Via Buzzfeed)
One of the women Alchin was convicted of harassing, Paloma Brierley Newton, told Alchin that she had taken screenshots of his comments and would be reporting him to the police, to which he replied: “What law am I breaking? I’m not the one out of the fucking kitchen.” However, it transpires that Alchin was actually in violation of section 474.17 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code Act, with him now facing up to three years imprisonment. He told police that he was responsible for 55 messages in total, though had been drunk at time.
Alchin initially pleaded not guilty, though today police revealed that he had reversed his stance, with him now pleading guilty to the charges. Brierley Newton stated that she was surprised by his plea reversal, but that she still wishes to hear him apologize for his comments.
If Alchin is given a sentence it would mark an unprecedented response to online harassment by the country, and could bring about a widespread change to how people conduct themselves online in the country. Though opinion is still divided on whether or not online harassment should be a police matter, the severity of the threats issued by Alchin are inarguable, so the punishment he is given will likely serve as a barometer of how other similar crimes shall be punished in the future.
