Research: Sexttorter victims pay a high price to collect photos
After becoming prey to sex mists, victims turn to companies that promise to remove content in exchange for high fees.
SAN FRANCISCO – The US Department of Justice recently announced the arrest of four men in West Africa for their roles in an international “sextomy” scheme targeting thousands of casualties, including minors across the US, Canada and Europe.
The arrests of Alfred Cassie and three suspects, all at Court Divoir, representing the latest major developments in efforts to counter the online shakedown that have led to suicide deaths in at least 30 American boys since 2021.
In the case of sexttorter, the perpetrator usually contacts the victim through social media, gains trust, and persuades them to share sexually explicit photos, followed by threats and demand for payments to post photos online.
Among the victims, prosecutors said he was a senior at a high school in San Jose, California. According to prosecutors, 17-year-old Ryan Rust took his life in February 2022 “hours after having sex with her online and then being sexed online.” He had already paid $150 by then.
“An important step in the fight against child exploitation”
In addition to Kassi, Ivorian law enforcement has also arrested two other individuals, Moussa Diaby and Oumar Cisse. Prosecutors said Diaby and Cisse were part of Kassi’s alleged Sexttorther Network and admitted to their sextorit crimes
“At the time of his arrest, Cassie is said to have still had a fragmentary message he sent over his phone to the 17-year-old victim in February 2022,” the Justice Department said in a news release that it also pointed out that the department had conducted a lengthy investigation with the help of Ibolia’s law enforcement.
Federal prosecutors added that Oumarou Ouedraogo, a suspected money launderer, was arrested by Ivorian law enforcement last month. According to the Justice Department, the accused will be charged at Cote D’Avoir, as Cote D’Avoir has not handed over the citizens.
According to the Department of Justice, US-based accomplice Jonathan Cassi was convicted in California court in 2023 and sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Last month, the FBI said a new global venture (another hotbed of crime) focused on fighting financial sextori from Nigeria led to the arrest of 22 people. According to the FBI, about half of them were related to suicide.
“This operation marks a key step in the fight against child exploitation and brings justice and accountability to international assailants who are hiding anonymously behind the screen,” said the agency, who cited guilty pleas in several sextrain cases since February amid recent success.
Sextoritized tips to the FBI rose 30%
The FBI said it had detected a “significant increase” in minor sextitute attempts. The number of sextrain-related reports made against the FBI’s National Tip Line rose 30% from October 2024 to March 2025 compared to previous such stretches.
The total of victims also reached 54,000 last year, from 34,000 in 2023, resulting in a financial loss of around $65 million.
In its annual report on internet crimes released on April 23, the bureau said the recent complaint of online terror attempts has more than doubled from 39,416 in 2022 to 86,415 in 2024.
And the outcome is devastating for families and far exceeds financial losses.
“Financial Sexttort represents a grave and growth threat to children, especially teenagers,” said Julie Cordua, CEO of Technology Nonprofit Thorn. “For our society, it reminds us that layered protection is urgently needed to keep our children safe online.”
The FBI urges Sexttorthor and his loved ones to contact their local FBI field office, call 1-800-Call-FBI at 1-800-225-5324, or report it online at the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Additional resources can be found at the Financially Motivated Sextorther-FBI.
