After finding that a lady had been misled into believing she was in a relationship with him, Home and Away star Lincoln Lewis expressed his dismay.
Lydia Abdelmalek, 29, of Melbourne, was convicted in June 2019 to a two-year, eight-month jail sentence for stalking six victims and imitating the soap star, which one victim described as “sick mind games.”
Lewis battled Abdelmalek via video connection in her County Court of Victoria appeal against the sentence on Monday.
She was released after posting a $10,000 bond and agreeing to abide by severe social media rules.
Abdelmalek had been so heartless at her first trial that she clutched an A4-sized photo of Lewis as her victims read their impact statements.
After learning that their alleged connection was a ruse, Lewis described the woman’s tension and fear.
The lady pleaded with Lewis, ‘Please tell me you’re lying.’
Lewis informed the court that the lady thought they had been dating for a few months.
Police claim Abdelmalek used doctored photos and a voice message from his own phone to persuade her she was dating Lewis.
When face-to-face meetings allegedly with Abdelmalek were cancelled, Lewis claimed the alleged victim got sceptical.
‘She was sceptical that we wouldn’t meet in person,’ he explained.
The lady, who knew Lewis when they were younger, had sent personal films and photos to a phone number she thought was his.
‘I inquired as to her well-being. ‘Her answer was a resounding No,’ Lewis said in court.
As additional disturbing details about Abdelmalek’s ploy emerged, Lewis spoke to the anxious woman many times.
‘It frightened her,’ Lewis said. ‘She couldn’t figure out what had happened.’
As he took to Instagram and Twitter in September 2013 to assure his fans that he had not interacted with anybody via a false Facebook page, Lewis advised the lady to call the cops.
By that time, he’d learned that his identity had been used to defraud another woman.
On Monday, Lewis was shown hundreds of photos that Abdelmalek allegedly used to persuade her victims that she was him.
Many of the photos had been altered to depict Lewis’ head on other people’s bodies.
Some pictures were shot by fans and friends of a much younger Lewis.
‘I wish I had pushed my shorts up a little higher in that photo,’ Lewis remarked, ashamed.
The horrible photobook of deceit included fake naked pictures.
According to Lewis, the woman, who worked for a major airline at the time, told Abdelmalek about his true home location and frequent flyer incentive system.
‘She expressed regret to me,’ Lewis added. ‘She thought she was providing me information,’ she said.
The scene was characterised by Lewis as “frightening.”
He said, ‘I wasn’t qualified to give her advise.’
Throughout Lewis’ Monday visit, Abdelmalek was spotted taking notes.
Abdelmalek has been accused of attempting to break up a married man’s relationship after falling in love with him since her release on appeal bail.
She was arrested on April 22 and spent a few days in jail when new claims surfaced that she was harassing people.
If Abdelmalek gets convicted of her catfishing fraud again, she might face a far lengthier prison sentence.
Her appeal, which had been been in the works for weeks, was expected to take up to six weeks to complete.
From May 2011, Abdelmalek stalked seven persons under the guise of Lewis and various identities for nearly four years.
One of Abdelmalek’s victims committed herself, but not before writing a statement detailing the pain of being tricked into believing the TV celebrity loved her.
The lady said she was tortured by her tormentor’s “sick obsession, twisted delight, and pathological gratification.”
After what the sentencing court characterised as “planned and callous” wrongdoing, another victim stated she had gone from party girl to hermit.
Abdelmalek went so far as to email her father, mother, sister, and brother-in-law obscene photos and nasty texts.
Another lady who was duped by the Lewis identity described how the’sick mind games’ transformed her from a party animal to a hermit.
The former Home and Away star has described how powerless he felt as a result of the catfishing, telling the court he felt powerless at an earlier appearance.
‘It destroys your mood and makes your day miserable.’ It makes you feel powerless and s**t,’ he explained.
‘It simply takes away your happiness because I now have this continual worry in my head that something is going on that I can’t stop or even find out about.’
