‘She will slowly disappear’: Second man under investigation for potentially drugging, raping and filming a woman

A W5 Investigation reveals the connections between man arrested for sexual assault in Ontario and an online network of men who drug, rape and record women.

Warning: This story contains graphic details and allegations of sexual assault

A man in Europe is now being investigated by police following W5’s infiltration of a global online network of men who secretly drug, rape, film and share the content of their wives and intimate partners.

This follows the arrest of a Hamilton, Ont. man on May 16. After being alerted by W5 of potential crimes taking place, Hamilton police arrested 36-year-old Bryan Hayward. He was subsequently charged with sexual assault; assault with a weapon; administering a noxious substance; distribution of intimate images; and voyeurism, among other charges.

He is accused of drugging, raping, filming and posting videos of his ex-girlfriend on a porn site.

Both the arrest of Hayward and the new case in Europe are a direct result of W5’s investigation.

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Senior Investigative Correspondent Avery Haines gained access to this massive online network by posing as a man who wanted to drug and assault his wife.

There, she uncovered Hayward’s profile and also befriended the man in Europe.

He shared his e-mail address with Haines, not realizing she was an undercover journalist. He revealed in horrific detail how he drugs and rapes his unsuspecting wife. The content of which is uploaded on a publicly accessible porn site.

“She will slowly disappear, her consciousness will leave, and leave you with a body at your command..,” he writes to Haines in one message.

He describes how his wife’s sleep apnea is of no concern:

“...well, she has respiratory arrest very rarely, so what? We don’t die from it!” he emails.

The man describes how he turns his wife into his own personal sex object:

“I had a lot of fun with my wife transformed into a toy…” the man writes. “...your doll will do everything you want guaranteed.”

He even brags that he has been knocking women unconscious for 20 years:

“None of the women I sedated suffered any after-effects, none…”

Over the course of several weeks of correspondence the man reveals his first name, his profession and the city in Europe where he lives. W5 alerted police who confirm they are now investigating the man.

In Hamilton, Bryan Hayward sits behind bars as he awaits an upcoming bail hearing on June 13. In the meantime, W5 dug up his criminal record. It reveals a history of charges and convictions spanning nearly two decades and several cities.

In addition to false ID charges and court attendance and bail condition convictions, Hayward was convicted of theft under $5,000 in Hamilton in 2009; utter forged documents and possess or sell ID documents in St. Catharines, Ont. in 2017; and fraud under $5,000 in Brantford, Ont. in 2018. There was also an impaired driving conviction last year in Cayuga, Ont.

In 2020 he was convicted on drug possession charges in Hamilton. Again in Hamilton, he was charged in 2021 for making an explosive substance which W5 has learned likely resulted in the amputation of his left hand. Those charges were later withdrawn.

• More W5 investigations

In July 2024, Hayward was charged with dangerous driving and criminal harassment stemming from an incident with an ex-girlfriend. He is currently charged with sexual assault for allegedly drugging and raping the same woman.

W5 has learned this same ex-girlfriend spoke with Hamilton police alerting them of similar alleged crimes in January 2024. Though Hamilton police did interview her, she ultimately didn’t press charges due to concerns she wouldn’t be believed.

Since Hayward’s arrest, other potential victims have contacted Hamilton police, but it is uncertain how many. In a statement, Hamilton police wrote “...to protect the integrity of the investigation we will not be releasing the number.”

Over half a dozen women have contacted W5 about Hayward relating to concerns surrounding drugging or alleged sexual assault.

A Toronto nurse shared a text exchange she says was with Hayward in 2022. “You drugged me and raped me. That will never be okay, and you should think about your daughter (if you actually have one) when you think about terrorizing other human beings,” she wrote. “You are less than human and you don’t deserve to be a parent.”

Hayward did not reply to her message and the woman did not report him to police.

W5 has confirmed that Hayward does in fact have a daughter.

In an exclusive interview, W5 interviewed Haywards’s ex-wife, the mother of his child. We are concealing her identity for the protection of her and her daughter.

“I have lost all trust and faith in the system,” she told W5’s Avery Haines. “It took yourself and the W5 team to uncover this and make this arrest happen. I truly believe that if it weren’t for your intervention, that he would still be free today.”

W5 will have more of that interview Friday, including distressing details involving the drugging of his own daughter.

More on this story:

• Canadian man at centre of widescale W5 sexual assault investigation arrested and charged
• Connections between network of men who drug, rape and record women, W5 investigation reveals
• W5 reveals disturbing ease with which network of rapists buy, make and administer drugs to abuse women

W5’s full documentary “Sleeping with the Enemy” that exposes a Canadian and alleged rapists around the world airs May 31 at 9 p.m. on CTV