If you’ve seen Netflix’s new two-part true crime docuseries Can I Tell You a Secret, you may be wondering where Matthew Hardy is now.
The series tells the shocking story of how Hardy, an unemployed man living in Northwich, Chesire, UK, created countless fake social media accounts to harass both men and women over the internet. Usually posing as friendly young women, his messages always began with, “Can I tell you a secret?” before turning very sinister.
According to the Netflix series, Hardy would imply that he knew damaging information about his victims’ lives and would create false rumors to turn their friends against them. He would catfish victims’ friends and family, sending sexually explicit messages, and on at least one occasion, nude photos obtained without the victim’s consent. If the victim blocked one account, dozens more would pop up. If they stopped responding, he’d make phone calls breathing heavily on the other end of the line, causing victims to believe they were in real danger.
This went on for 11 years, affecting at least 62 victims and possible dozens more, according to The Guardian.
Where Is Matthew Hardy Now?
On January 26, 2022, then-30 year old Hardy — an unemployed man living in Northwich, Chesire, UK — was sentenced to nine years in prison for cyber stalking, according to the Chesire Constabulary.
Hardy pleaded guilty to “three counts of stalking with intent to cause alarm or distress, two counts of stalking without intent to cause alarm and breaching a restraining order from 2013, which banned him from using false details on social networking sites,” according to the Constabulary.
He confessed to having stalked an additional four women, but the total number of stalking victims could be as high as 62 or more, according to The Guardian, which reports that the cyber stalking went on for 11 years over which time Hardy was arrested 10 times before he was finally jailed.
But just under a year later, his sentenced was reduced.
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“11 months after he was sent to prison, Matthew Hardy’s sentence was reduced from nine years to eight years at the Court of Appeal,” reads a statement at the end of episode 2 of Can I Tell You a Secret.
The Constabulary notes that Hardy will serve a minimum of four-and-a-half years.
Hardy is currently in prison, though the name of the exact prison and his current release date were not immediately available.
Can I Tell You a Secret? is now streaming on Netflix.
Main Image: Matthew Hardy’s mug shot pictured in Can I Tell You a Secret?. Credit: Chesire Police / Netflix.
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