Two women who had books written about their experiences of sexual abuse say they have been “retraumatised” by the refusal of online retailer Amazon to remove the books from sale.
The women, who cannot be named for legal reasons, asked Amazon to remove the books from sale after Edward White, co-author of the books, was convicted of sexual assault of a nine-year old girl last year.
Both women say they feel they were “duped” by White, who falsely told them he was a journalist with the Sunday Times newspaper.
White, a former hypnotist turned writer and sketch artist, was convicted in Tullamore Circuit Court last year on two counts of sexually assaulting the girl.
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He is serving a 3½-year jail sentence.
White, whose original name is John O’Loughlin, had amassed more than 20,000 followers on social media network X.
Under the online handle Editorialz he made highly personal attacks on Government ministers and others, with many of his posts veering into abuse and racism.
Before changing his name to White, O’Loughlin had faced complaints from women about his hypnosis stage shows.
In 2019 White co-authored a book with Hervé Jaubert, a French former spy, about Jaubert’s efforts to free princess Latifa of Dubai before his escape boat was raided by Indian and Emirati special forces.
Jaubert said he later had to remove the book from sale.
“I had asked Edward White to edit my book, including English editing, grammar and spelling,” he said.
“As the publisher and author, I removed the book from publication a few days after I discovered gross discrepancies, inflated accounts and sexualised content that were never part of my story. It was unethical, unacceptable and dishonest, and I unpublished the book immediately.”
White is the author or co-author of two books available for sale on Amazon that tell the personal stories of two women who say they were abused as children.
Both women have spoken to The Irish Times about their disgust at learning of White’s conviction for sexual offences against a minor.
One of the women, Lorraine, had her life story turned into the book Little Lorraine – A Terrible Secret by White, after he moved into a house beside her in 2018. Having made a Garda complaint about her alleged abuser, Lorraine said White promised that he could get her case reopened.
“I genuinely took him as having an air of authority about him and that he knew what he was talking about,” says Lorraine, who lives in the midlands.
“I could see that he knew a lot about the law. I think he came across as, ‘If I put my mind to doing this, I can do this. There’s no one stopping me.’ I thought I was in safe hands.”
I suppose we’re a little bit naive and gullible and we want to do this to help people. He took that and ran with it
— Portia
Lorraine says White told her they did not need a contract for the book as he was her neighbour and she could trust him. Lorraine says White claimed to be a Sunday Times journalist and promised he would get her on The Late Late Show once her book was published.
She says White accompanied her to her nearby Garda station and secured meetings with senior gardaí to discuss her case.
When the book was published by White in 2021, Lorraine says he asked her to accompany him as they drove around to sell copies to her friends who had an interest in buying it.
She felt embarrassed asking friends for €30 for each book. Sometimes they sold up to 20 books a day. She says all the money was given to White and the total amount he gave her for the book was €200.
The book was sold on Amazon and in local shops, where they “flew out the door”.
White set up a Justice for Lorraine site and Facebook page. This was where a second woman, Portia, got in touch with White.
Portia (not her real name), who is from north Munster, sent messages to the Facebook page asking if White could be trusted after reading about Lorraine’s story. She did not know at the time that White controlled the page.
He responded recommending White as an author who could help her write her book.
Portia had written about her own experiences of childhood sexual abuse during the Covid lockdowns.
At first she did not like White, despite his claims of working for the Sunday Times and of having worked for RTÉ.
She agreed to send him her draft story and then White asked her to pay him €6,000 to write a book about her story.
She did not have the money and was receiving disability payments. She paid over €3,000 after signing a one-page contract that White gave her using the brand “StoryKinds”.
The Irish Times has seen a copy of the signed contract and the bank records showing the transfer of the money on September 20th, 2021.
Despite that contract specifying that both White and Portia would each receive 50 per cent of the royalties, she has never received any money from the book, The Proposal from Hell.
After the book came out in 2022, Portia says White “pestered” her to pay the second €3,000 to him.
“He was horrible towards me in the end,” she says.
I personally feel I’ve been victimised all over again – emotionally raped
— Portia
Both women were shocked to learn about White’s conviction for abuse last year. They find it hard to believe they did not see the warning signs about White’s behaviour given their own childhood experiences.
Lorraine feels responsible for Portia giving money to White, as they met through her Facebook page.
“Now we are in the same predicament,” she says.
Portia believes White targeted both of them.
They both say they kept the abuse they suffered secret for decades before agreeing to tell their stories in books with White because he convinced them it would help other victims.
“It just makes me so angry to know that he’s seen whatever is in us,” says Portia.
“I suppose we’re a little bit naive and gullible and we want to do this to help people. He took that and ran with it, despite knowing how vulnerable we are.
“I personally feel I’ve been victimised all over again – emotionally raped. My anxiety went really bad. I’m on medication and my mental health went down.”
They want to ensure White cannot profit from their books.
Despite making direct contact with Amazon to complain that White duped them by posing as a Sunday Times journalist, the web giant has refused to remove the books from sale.
Portia says the thought of White profiting from her book is causing her distress. Lorraine says she feels retraumatised by Amazon’s refusal to remove the book.
She is worried other abuse victims might be convinced to tell their stories to White after his release from prison if they see the books for sale on Amazon.
“He needs to be stopped,” she says.
White has also written a book of reviews of Late Late Show episodes, which is for sale on Amazon.
Asked to comment, a spokesperson for Amazon said: “This is a dispute between an author and individuals referenced in the author’s book and can only be addressed directly between the parties.”
The Sunday Times says it has had no connection or interaction with any individual called Edward White or John O’Loughlin in the past 10 years.
The Irish Times wrote to White in Mountjoy Prison, where he is serving his sentence, but received no response. There was also no response to a request for comment from White made through his solicitor.
