Man charged in Rock Hill sexual exploitation blackmail under SC ‘Gavin’s Law’
A South Carolina man from the Charleston area is jailed in York County under a recently-enacted state law on allegations that he blackmailed a Rock Hill woman over videos and pictures he would release unless she paid him, according to police and court documents.
Police in Dorchester County arrested Malachi Alonzo-Lee Strawder, 20, of Summerville, on a charge of felony sexual extortion before he was brought to Rock Hill over the weekend, Rock Hill police Lt. Michael Chavis said.
Detectives worked the case after the woman reported the extortion attempt in April, Chavis said.
Strawder “threatened to disseminate explicit videos and nude photographs” unless the victim paid him $300, according to an arrest warrant.
Strawder remains in the York County jail on $10,000 bail, records show.
Law named for son of SC lawmaker who was blackmailed
In 2023, South Carolina enacted ‘Gavin’s Law,’ which targets offenders who sexually exploit people online through blackmail. The law is named in honor of Rock Hill teen Gavin Guffey, son of S.C. Rep. Brandon Guffey, a Rock Hill Republican. It passed unanimously in a bipartisan vote and was signed into law ceremonially in Rock Hill.
Gavin Guffey was 17 when he committed suicide in 2022 after a man in Nigeria allegedly sexually exploited him over online photos. His father led the effort to create tougher state and federal laws, and remains a national advocate for tougher online protections. The accused man was extradited to the U.S. and remains jailed pending trial in federal court.
Brandon Guffey appeared with President Donald Trump at the White House last year when new federal sexual extortion laws were signed.
This story was originally published May 12, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Man charged in Rock Hill sexual exploitation blackmail under SC ‘Gavin’s Law’."
