Three Nigerians charged in international ‘sextortion’ ring following Michigan investigation
EDITOR'S NOTE: This article contains graphic details and may be disturbing to some readers.
MARQUETTE — Three Nigerian nationals have been charged for operating an international sextortion ring following a year-long investigation that originated in the Upper Peninsula.
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten announced the charges and the unsealing of a federal indictment on Wednesday, May 3.
Samuel Ogoshi, 22, Samson Ogoshi, 20, and Ezekiel Ejehem Robert, 19, all of Lagos, Nigeria, are charged in a four-count indictment.
“The indictment, which was unsealed this morning, alleges these defendants targeted more than 100 victims, both minors and adults,” Totten said in a press conference. “One of the victims in this case was 17-year-old Jordan DeMay, of Marquette, Michigan, who tragically took his life as a result of this crime.”
DeMay is referred to as Victim 1 in the indictment. His parents were in attendance during Wednesday’s press conference.
Totten defined the criminal scheme in question as “sextortion.”
“Sextortion is a type of blackmail where the perpetrator demands money or sexual favors from an individual by threatening to reveal evidence of their sexual activity,” Totten said.
“When a sextortion occurs online, the perpetrator often pretends to be someone else and then persuades the victim to send compromising photos or perhaps engage in compromising conversation. The perpetrator then threatens to disclose those photos or the conversation if the victim doesn’t provide either money or further sexual favors.”
This is what happened to DeMay.
According to Totten, a federal grand jury has alleged the three defendants purchased multiple hacked social media accounts. One of these accounts was used to create the Instagram persona of dani.robertts.
"Over the course of a short conversation, Samuel Ogoshi, pretending to be this young woman, persuaded Jordan DeMay to send a sexually explicit image of himself," Totten said.
The defendants allegedly used online tools to research their victims, including where they live, attend school and who their family and friends are.
“Once (he) had the sexually explicit image in hand, the indictment alleges that Ogoshi then turned to extort Jordan DeMay for money,” Totten said.
Messages from March 25, 2022, shared during the press conference show the fake dani.robertts account asking DeMay for $1,000 and threatening to expose the image. DeMay paid $300, but the dani.robertts account continued to make threats.
The following exchange occurred a little over two hours after the initial threat:
dani.robertts: Goodbye
dani.robertts: Enjoy your miserable life
Victim 1: I’m kms rn [I’m killing myself right now]
Victim 1: Bc of you [Because of you]
dani.robertts: Good
dani.robertts: Do that fast
dani.robertts: Or I’ll make you do it
dani.robertts: I swear to God
DeMay’s death launched an international investigation into the sextortion ring.
“This was a multi-faceted investigation that involved identifying dozens of victims, following the digital breadcrumbs left behind by the sextortionists on the internet, tracking the payments made by victims through multiple financial entities and working with our Nigerian counterpart, the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, to identify our subjects in Nigeria,” said James Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan.
“It is through the herculean effort of the FBI Marquette, across Michigan, and at headquarters in D.C. that we’re here today, just a little over a year since Jordan’s death, announcing charges against these subjects.”
DeMay’s parents, Jennifer Buta and John DeMay, read from a statement on Wednesday. They described their son as “a son, a brother, a grandson, a friend, a student, a co-worker and a role model. He was the perfect mix of fun-loving and hard-working. He played hard, he loved hard, and he never held back.”
“As parents, we cannot begin to imagine what Jordan went through that night and how scared he was because of this senseless act,” Buta said. “When we were informed that Jordan was potentially a victim of an internet scam called sextortion via Instagram, there was never a hesitation in our minds to share his story. We wanted everyone to be aware about sextortion and have those tough conversations with their families so if it did happen to them they knew to talk to someone.”
Buta said they hope to bring more awareness of this crime to children, young adults and parents.
“Our family has forever been changed by this heinous crime and our objective is to prevent another individual from being victimized. Kids, teenagers, young adults and even adults can be a target of sextortion. We urge you to have discussions about this and have a plan for your children to reach out if it does happen to them,” she said. “Jordan will never be forgotten. He will forever be in our hearts and will drive us forward to share his story and help others.”
Tarasca also urged young people and their caregivers to educate themselves about sextortion and help others from being victimized.
“If you have been financially sextorted, remember the predator is to blame. Not your child, or you,” he said.
If you encounter a sextortion situation, Tarasca also advises:
Report the predator’s account via the platform’s safety feature
Block the predator, but do not delete the profile or messages because that information is useful to law enforcement
Ask for help from a trusted adult or law enforcement before sending money or more images
“Our partners at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children have a program called Take It Down that can help victims mitigate the spread of their images online,” Tarasca said. “If you’re not ready to speak to the FBI, go to another trusted adult. Say you’re being victimized online and need help. Talking about this can feel impossible, but there are people who want to help you.”
Totten said the extradition process for the three defendants is underway and they have received the full cooperation of Nigerian officials.
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The defendants are charged in a four-count indictment:
Count 1 charges Samuel Ogoshi with Sexual Exploitation and Attempted Sexual Exploitation of a Minor Resulting in Death. The charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison and a statutory mandatory minimum of 30 years in prison.
Count 2 charges all three men with Conspiracy to Sexually Exploit Minors. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison.
Count 3 charges all three men with Conspiracy to Distribute Child Pornography. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison.
Count 4 charges Conspiracy to Commit Stalking. The charge has a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
“This investigation is ongoing,” Totten said. “We may bring future charges against other defendants.”
If you have information about or believe you are a victim of sextortion, contact your local FBI field office, call 1-800-CALL-FBI, or report it online at tips.fbi.gov.
— Contact Jillian Fellows at jfellows@petoskeynews.com.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Three Nigerians charged in ‘sextortion’ ring after Michigan investigation
