A criminal who gained notoriety as ‘the man who squeezes muscles’ has become the unlikely face of a controversial new range of products.

The late Akinwale Arobieke, who was often referred to by a racist nickname we have decided not to repeat, died esrlier this year.

The 64-year-old, who was well-known across Liverpool, Preston and the North West, was found dead at his address in the Princes Park area of Liverpool on August 26.

The bodybuilder branded the ‘modern-day bogeyman’ was found guilty of stalking and other crimes after continually asking young men to squeeze their muscles.

Akinwale Arobieke became known across Merseyside and the North West as ‘the man who squeezes muscles’ and branded the ‘modern-day bogeyman’ after being accused of harassing young men and asking to touch their muscles | Iconic Media

placeholder image — Akinwale Arobieke became known across Merseyside and the North West as ‘the man who squeezes muscles’ and branded the ‘modern-day bogeyman’ after being accused of harassing young men and asking to touch their muscles | Iconic Media

Birmingham based company Inferno Official, which makes lifelike romance dolls of celebrities, said they had launched their new range of products after they began getting requests for dolls of him.

The company has now created a controversial range of gifts with an eye on the Christmas present market.

Ben Stroud, a spokeman for Inferno said: "As a company we have always responded to customer demand. And we kept on seeing comments and messages about Akinwale Arobieke after he died.

"The phrase 'he touched so many lives' was trending on Twitter so I asked a few Liverpool friends about him and was just amazed at the story.

"So the requests for products made sense."

He added: "He is Liverpool's bogeyman and I think all the stories which came out after he died was because his victims finally felt they could say what he did to them without fear of him turning up on their door step.

“This is a very Scouse thing, they are known for their sense of humour."

Akinwale Arobieke, who became known across Merseyside and the North West as ‘the man who squeezes muscles’ and branded the ‘modern-day bogeyman’, has become the face of a new range of controversial products | Iconic Media

Akinwale Arobieke was convicted of harassing 15 men in 2003 - receiving a six-year prison sentence - and a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO) was later imposed, which prohibited him from touching men's muscles and attending gyms.

Mr Arobieke was released from prison in 2006 but arrested the following year for breaching the SOPO in an incident in Preston, leading to a further stint in prison.

There were multiple subsequent breaches relating to the touching of muscles. The ban was later scrapped - after he successfully appealed against it.

In 2022, Mr Arobieke sued the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police for malicious prosecution and misfeasance in public office. He received a substantial pay out, after alleging two officers had targeted him since 2012.

In 2016, the BBC aired a documentary titled ‘The Man Who Squeezes Muscles’. Its release led to Mr Arobieke making a complaint to Merseyside Police, regarding racism.