Omaha FBI alerts 'sextortion' scheme targeting boys

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - The FBI wanted to warn the public of an increase in sextortion incidents specifically targeting boys.

Officials say the FBI Omaha Field Office has received reports of adults posing as young girls coercing young boys through social media to produce sexual images and videos and then extorting money from them and other forms of sextortion.

The release defines sextortion as a crime that can carry heavy penalties that can end in life sentences.

Further, in the release, officials break down the recent incidents of sextortion of a “predator (posing as a young girl) using deception and manipulation to convince a young male, usually 14 to 17 years old, to engage in explicit activity over video, which is then secretly recorded by the predator. The predator then reveals that they have made the recordings and attempts to extort the victim for money to prevent them from being posted online.”

To make the victimization stop, children typically have to come forward to someone—normally a parent, teacher, caregiver, or law enforcement. The embarrassment children feel from the activity they were forced to engage in is what typically prevents them from coming forward.

Sextortion offenders may have hundreds of victims around the world, so coming forward to help law enforcement identify the offender may prevent countless other incidents of sexual exploitation to that victim and others.