A Bury St Edmunds man has been sentenced after pleading guilty to blackmail.

It follows an incident on 11 March where a female victim was filmed in a toilet at West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds. The victim later received a demand on social media to make a payment of £1000 to an individual.

35 year old Piotr Prasalek of Pemberton Walk in Bury St Edmunds was sentenced at Ipswich Crown Court on Friday 28 October to three years in jail after pleading guilty to blackmail at an earlier hearing.

Following police enquiries Prasalek was arrested on 22 March and taken to Bury St Edmunds Police Investigation Centre for questioning and subsequently charged with making an unwarranted demand with menaces and a second charge of recording a person conducting a private act with the intention of obtaining sexual gratification.

During the investigation police worked closely with staff at the hospital to search all toilets throughout the hospital premises and help develop a plan of action to prevent similar incidents occurring in the future.

DI Stuart Dolan from West Suffolk CID said: “This was a situation that caused great emotional distress to the victim. To record and exploit her through trying to blackmail her into giving Prasalek £1000 was a disgusting and heartless act. I hope he reflects deeply on his actions and behaviour and how these impacted the victim.”

Craig Black, chief executive for West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We thank the police for their prompt response and support in dealing with this case.

“We continue to support those affected by this terrible act.

“There is no place for this in our Trust and community; our buildings are a place of safety for all who access our services. We have taken steps, with our security teams, to regularly check our premises and have put in place measures to ensure this kind of incident does not happen again.”