The Enigmatic Tale of Purple Aki: A Closer Look at the Curious Case
Purple Aki, a name that’s almost mythical in the northwest of England, owes his fame to an unusual compulsion: touching the muscles of young men. But who is this enigmatic figure, and what’s the story behind his notoriety?
In the 1980s, a man named Akinwale Arobieke, dubbed Purple Aki, approached young rugby players requesting to touch their muscles. He also gave exercise advice and asked for muscle poses. This curious behavior turned him into a local legend in the 1990s, with teenagers swapping stories about the man who sought to feel their muscles. With his distinctive plastic bag, he often traveled between northern train stations, becoming a subject of jokes in Liverpool, Manchester, and North Wales.
Aki’s presence was occasionally featured in local newspapers due to his encounters with the law. In 2006, he was banned from touching, feeling, or measuring muscles, and asking strangers to do squats for him. Additionally, he was prohibited from being near schools and gyms and was barred from entering Warrington, Widnes, and St Helens – all towns with a strong rugby tradition.
Purple Aki’s Brush with the Law
In 1986, 16-year-old Gary Kelly’s encounter with Purple Aki took a tragic turn. Aki had followed Gary to his school and asked to touch his muscles. Later that year, at an outdoor swimming pool in New Brighton, Gary spotted Aki again. Frightened, he fled and ended up on train tracks, where he touched an electrified rail and tragically lost his life.
Akinwale was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, indecent assault, and harassment of multiple boys. He received a 30-month prison sentence. However, Aki appealed in 1988, asserting that his presence on the platform wasn’t a criminal offense. The appeal succeeded, leading to his release and a compensation payout.
Despite his release, Aki’s fixation continued to land him in legal trouble. In 2003, he was imprisoned for 15 counts of harassment and witness intimidation. In a bizarre twist, Aki breached his sexual harm prevention order (SHPO) by touching a man’s biceps without permission, leading to another 15-month jail term.
The years that followed saw Aki’s repeated arrests, including one in 2010 for touching a 16-year-old’s muscles. This time, he was labeled a “sexual predator” by the judge. Aki maintained his innocence, claiming he was set up. An arrest in 2015 for harassing a young man on a train only added to the complex saga.
The End of an Obsession
Finally, in April 2016, Aki’s SHPO was lifted after psychologists determined that his fixation on touching muscles wasn’t driven by sexual motives. With this decision, a chapter in Purple Aki’s unusual story came to an end.
The tale of Purple Aki, with its twists, controversies, and tragic moments, remains a puzzle that captured the curiosity of the northwest for decades.