According to the U.S. Department of Justice, authorities arrested four Ivory Coast men in an international scheme that targeted thousands of victims around the world three years after committing suicide as a result of a California teen being “sextorted” online.
Ivorian law enforcement arrested Alfred Kassi, Oumarou Ouedraogo, Moussa Diaby and Oumar Cisse.
The scheme is aimed at people including the US, Canada, the UK, France, Spain and Italy, including minors. Among the victims was Ryan Rust, a 17-year-old high school senior from San Jose.
The last person planning to attend Washington State University committed suicide in February 2022 hours after being sunk online at the Six Face Edge by someone pretending to be a 20-year-old woman, authorities said. The teenager paid $150 to prevent the intimate images he sent from popularizing.
The evidence that authorities did not disclose ultimately led law enforcement to Kassi, a Kosi citizen living on the ivory coast. According to the Justice Department, at the time of Cassie’s arrest on April 29, he was still on the phone with a message requesting payment, the last time he was asked to pay.
“We’re grateful for that [law enforcement officials] Last mother, Pauline Stuart, spoke about her recent arrest. “Unfortunately, we won’t bring Ryan back. It’s one of those double-edged swords. My son is still gone, but I hope that this arrest will bring awareness and scare the con artists because they feel safe in a foreign country. I don’t think they’ll be touched.”
“My son is still gone, but with this arrest I hope it will bring awareness and scare the con artist,” said Pauline Stuart, who showed it with his son Ryan.
(Commentary of Pauline Stuart)
An investigation involving US and Koiboria law enforcement has identified several money laundering accomplices, including Oudraogo. According to the Justice Department, Koiboria law enforcement arrested Uedraogo on April 25th.
Diaby and Cisse are said to have been part of Kassi’s Sexttorther Network and have admitted a crime that may have been their own sextory, according to the Department of Justice. US-based accomplice Jonathan Cassi, who has nothing to do with Alfred Cassi, was found guilty in California court in 2023 and sentenced to 18 months in prison.
According to the Justice Department, the government in Ivory Coast has not handed over its own citizens, so those arrested will be charged in their own country under the Koiber Cyber Crime Act.
In a 2022 video posted on the San Jose Police Station Facebook page, Stuart described his son as a Straight A student who planned to major in Agriculture Biotechnology. She said at the end that she was “very trustworthy” and that she was fitted with the cat by someone who was interested in him and expressed interest.
“This is one of the big issues with social media,” Stuart said. “People can pretend who they are.”
According to CNN, the scammer sent out a nude photo at the end, then asked for reward. The scammer then asked for $5,000, published the photos and threatened to send them to his last family and friends. After the last time I said I couldn’t pay the full amount, the total fell to $150.
Stuart said when his son sent the money, the con man “continues to hold him.”
In a suicide note, Stuart told the Times, apologizing in the end for not being smart enough.
“He didn’t realize these people were using him. He was afraid of what it would do to us,” Stuart said.
Stuart said the scam unfolded despite the fact that his son’s phone and app had parental control. She urged her parents to talk to their children, so they felt comfortable coming to them with any mistake.
“We need to make sure the kids know you’re there. They’re everything about you,” Stuart said. “The mistakes we make are not worth taking our lives.”
The FBI’s Sacramento office warned parents last year about an increasing threat to sextorth.
According to the FBI, from October 2021 to March 2023, the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations received more than 13,000 reports of online financial fragments of minors. The sextomy involved at least 12,600 victims (mainly boys) leading to at least 20 suicides.
The FBI separately stated that reports of financially motivated sextori cases involving minors between October 2022 and March 2023 have increased by at least 20%, according to the agency.
“Our office, which covers 34 California counties, has seen a significant increase in reported sextomy incidents, and most of these include financial sextration,” said Shaun Lagan’s special agent at FBI Sacramento Field Office in a 2024 news release.
“We urge victims to maintain all the evidence and promptly seek help,” Lagan said. “Even if it’s embarrassing, don’t remove communications. Make sure you’re connected to the resources needed to protect and support and recover sexual victims.”
Suicide Prevention and Crisis Counseling Resources
If you or someone you know is struggling with the idea of suicide, call 9-8-8 for help from a professional. The US’s first national triple-digit mental health crisis hotline 988 connects callers with trained mental health counselors. “Home” text to US and Canada 741741 to reach the text line of crisis.
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