Today’s charges are just the latest in a series of legal entanglements for Bollaert and YouGotPosted. The San Diego Union-Tribune reports: “In an unrelated federal case, he is charged with making false statements — giving a false home address — while acquiring 31 firearms from different gun dealers in San Diego. He entered a guilty plea in November and is to be sentenced Jan. 17.”
Earlier this year, the company was sued twice in federal court — once in Nevada, once in Michigan — over trademark and copyright infringement claims. In the Nevada case, YouGotPosted failed to respond to trademark allegations, then was held in contempt and hit with a $300,000 default judgment. The suits named both Bollaert and Eric Chanson, a New Jersey man described as Bollaert’s partner in setting up the alleged YouGotPosted extortion scheme, and Chanson’s parents.
An affidavit in support of today’s arrest warrant from state Department of Justice special agent Brian Cardwell describes how YouGotPosted works:
When a user (poster) of Ugotposted posts images to the site, the site requires the poster to add a link identifying the posted individual’s (victim’s) Facebook page along with the victim’s full name, location, and age. Ugotposted also allows for other types of social media links to be added, such as Twitter and Tumblr. Ugotposted allows Internet users to access the website, post comments about the victims, which most are degrading, and view the victims’ posted personal identifiable information.
And this, according to the warrant, is how the alleged extortion scheme operated:
Bollaert extorted money from victims that were posted on Ugotposted by directing the victims to the website changemyreputation.com and asking for money to removed the images from Ugotposted. There is evidence that shows Bollaert and Eric Chanson, a former business partner of Bollaert, created the websites. When a victim inquired about removing the images from Ugotposted, they would not receive a response; however, Ugotposted hosted a link to the webpage changemyreputation.com and for a fee, the images would be removed from Ugotposted.
Cardwell’s affidavit also recounts a Sept. 18, 2013, interview with Bollaert held in the community of La Jolla, in northern San Diego:
He stated that he owned Ugotposted and that he had recently shut the site down. Bollaert stated he and his friend Eric Chanson started the site and Chanson has not had any action with the site since December. Bollaert stated, “At the beginning, it was fun and entertaining, but now it’s just like ruining my life.” … I asked Bollaert did he understand what it was doing to the people being posted on by requiring the full name, residing city, and link to the person’s Facebook page. Bollaert stated, “Yeah, I realize like this is not a good situation. I feel bad about the whole thing and like I just don’t want to do it anymore. I mean I know a lot of people are getting screwed over like on the site. Like their lives are getting ruined.”
The site’s impact can be judged from the experience of 14 “Jane Doe” victims listed in Cardwell’s affidavits. The victims, all women, all reportedly told investigators of nonstop harassment that followed their pictures appearing on YouGotPosted. The affidavit also includes emails to YouGotPosted from those begging, or demanding, to have images removed. Here’s one:
… This website is an absolute disgrace. It makes me sick to my stomach you run this as your little family business. I had pictures posted as of last night … I demand that you delete them now. I have gone to the police, I’ve had a restraining order put in place because of this site, my phone has been going off EVERY TWO MINUTES with strange men sending inappropriate things to me. It’s disgusting. … I don’t know what gets you off about ruining people’s lives, but I was under aged in the photos posted of me so yes, you are showing child pornography. Delete every single one of the photos with my information.
