New details have emerged in the case of bisexual rugby player Levi Davis’ disappearance, supporting the athlete’s claims that he was being sexually abused and blackmailed before he vanished.
Davis was last seen on October 29, 2022 outside the Old Irish Pub in Barcelona, Spain. He had been staying with a close friend on the nearby island of Ibiza, but suddenly departed on a ferry with only a small backpack and minimal clothing and money. He went missing three hours after he arrived on the mainland, where his passport was found. A recent independent investigation from the Byline Times found new key details that shine a light on law enforcement’s several shortcomings in the initial days of their search.
One alarming discovery revealed that while Spanish police believed the reason Davis traveled to Barcelona was to meet someone from the gay dating and hook-up app Grindr, they did not follow through on their application for help with the company. Investigators also did not make an effort to check who Davis was messaging on apps such as Instagram, WhatsApp, and OnlyFans, despite the platforms being mentioned in their initial reports.
Investigators did not obtain footage of Levi through Barcelona’s robust CCTV network, creating a six-hour hole in official knowledge, according to the outlet, nor did they follow up with a British tourist who claimed to see Davis in the city six days after his disappearance. They also did not uncover WhatsApp activity from Davis’ account as it appeared to sync with a new device 17 weeks after he vanished.
The Times investigation supported Davis’ claims that he was being being blackmailed and stalked. The athlete made the allegations in a chilling video posted to his Instagram shortly before his disappearance. The video was quickly deleted, leading authorities to believe others had access to his social media, but a copy was uncovered by a private investigator hired by Davis’s family.
“My name is Levi Davis and my life is in danger,” Davis said to open the video. “I beg that you listen and try to understand what I’m telling you.”
Davis explained that his problems began not long after his appearance on the U.K.’s X Factor in 2019, when an assailant drugged him and filmed him performing sex acts, then used the footage to blackmail him. Davis claimed his agent told him he should resign from his rugby team because it appeared they were going to fire him, and that information from his interview with police had been obtained by his blackmailers. Davis also said that confidential information from his medical records was leaked by the U.K.’s NHS, and that he was not the first person to be blackmailed by the group.
“The information I gave to police went directly back to these individuals. I also understand I’m not the only one this is happening to,” he continued. “What I wish you to understand with organized crime is that it is not one person. It’s an aggregate of people. People you do not know. People that get into your lives through whatever means possible.”
The Times found evidence in Davis’ WhatsApp messages that he was being groomed by a prominent television figure in June 2020 — around the time some nonconsensual videos were taken. Davis turned to drugs to cope and fell in with a “county lines gang,” being pressured into doing more drugs and partaking in sex parties where he was “abused in extreme ways while unconscious.” On one occasion, Davis was forced to pay £1,200 ($1,300) to supply a party with drugs under the threat of the videos being released.
Davis became England’s first active out LGBTQ+ rugby player when he came out publicly as bisexual in Sept., 2020, after privately telling his teammates in April of that year. He wrote to them over text: “Hi guys. I just want to tell you something that’s been eating away at me for four years now. I want to be open and honest with you boys, as friends and team-mates. I’m bisexual.” The revelation was met with support from both his team and fans worldwide.
Sources told the Times that Davis’ coming out was part of a way to take back control of his life after the blackmailers threatened to out him.
Davis’ mother, Julie, who was also threatened by her son’s blackmailers, said that she believes racism and homophobia played a part in how law enforcement and the public reacted to his disappearance. She is calling on authorities to reopen the investigate, which went cold last year, maintaining that “until his body is found, I will not give up hope.”
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, the National Sexual Assault Hotline is available 24/7 with free and confidential services. More resources are available here. If you or someone you know has experienced trafficking, or if you suspect someone is a victim of trafficking, the National Human Trafficking Hotline is also available at 1-888-373-7888, toll-free and 24/7.
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