Jordan DeMay

MARQUETTE — Three Nigerian men await extradition to the U.S. for allegedly committing sexual extortion that resulted in the death of a Marquette teen.

U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten on Wednesday announced the unsealing of a federal indictment charging three Nigerian men with sexually extorting numerous young men and teenage boys in the Western District of Michigan and across the U.S., charging one of them with causing the death of Jordan DeMay of Marquette.

On March 25, 2022, 17-year-old DeMay, a student at Marquette Senior High School, was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His death prompted an investigation by the Marquette County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which culminated in the indictment unsealed on Wednesday.

“Sextortion is a horrible crime that can leave especially younger victims feeling ashamed with nowhere to turn,” Totten said in a statement. “My heart goes out to the family of Jordan DeMay. Nothing can bring Jordan back, but my office is committed to securing justice and, alongside Jordan’s family, sending an urgent warning so others can protect themselves and their families. We will travel the world to hold the perpetrators of these crimes accountable.”

Financial sextortion is a global crisis that impacts teens in the U.S. and around the world, said James A. Tarasca, special agent in (Continued from 1-A)

charge of the FBI in Michigan. “That’s why the FBI is working hand in hand with our domestic and international law enforcement partners to prevent youth from becoming victims of this tragic crime and to hold those who target our teens in this manner accountable — no matter where in the world they may be,” Tarasca said in a statement.

The DeMay family also has spoken out on the matter, and has been forthright from the beginning. The MCSO said following the incident that it typically does not report on suicides, but DeMay’s parents requested the information be released.

“Our focus going forward is to bring more awareness to children, young adults and parents,” the DeMay family said in a statement. “Our family has forever been changed by this heinous crime and our objective is to prevent another individual from being victimized,” the DeMay family said. “Kids, teenagers 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.”

DeMay’s parents, Jennifer Buta and John DeMay, said, “Jordan’s smile could light up any room. Jordan’s charm and beautiful smile were contagious, drawing people to him wherever he went and leaving a lasting impression on everyone he met. He wanted to connect and be everyone’s friend and he did just that.

“As parents, we cannot begin to imagine what Jordan went through that night and how scared he was because of this senseless act. 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.”

The family expressed its gratitude to the MCSO, Michigan State Police, the Marquette Township Fire Department, Marquette City Police, the FBI, the United States Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice as well as the Nigerian government and its law enforcement.

Four-count indictment

The defendants, Samuel Ogoshi, 22; Samson Ogoshi, 20; and Ezekiel Ejehem Robert, 19, all of Lagos, Nigeria, 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 in association with the death of DeMay. 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 by causing the minors to produce child pornographic images that the defendants then used to blackmail the 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 for sending the child pornography images to the minors, as well as their families and friends. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison.

— Count 4 charges conspiracy to commit stalking through the internet for engaging in this sextortion scheme as it relates to both minors and young adults. The charge has a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison.

All charges have provisions for fines, restitution and supervised release after their release from prison, according to the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan.

There are additional allegations in the federal indictment. The grand jury alleges that the defendants bought hacked social media accounts and used the accounts to pose as young women to lure teenage and young adult males into sexual chats. One of the accounts used was an Instagram account bearing the user name “dani.robertts,” which communicated with DeMay shortly before his death.

After initiating chat conversations with the victims, the defendants simultaneously used Google and other online applications to research information about the victims, including where the victims lived, where they went to school or worked and the identities of their family and friends.

The grand jury alleges that the defendants then solicited their victims to produce and send sexually explicit images of themselves. Once the defendants received sexually explicit images, they created collages that included the sexually explicit image alongside other images of the victims from social media, including images of the victims’ school, family and friends.

The defendants then threatened to disclose the collages to others — including the family, friends and classmates of their victims– via social media unless the victims paid money. The grand jury alleges the defendants engaged in this extortion and attempted extortion of more than 100 people.

The grand jury alleges that on March 25, 2022, after DeMay was induced to send a naked picture of himself, Samuel Ogoshi used the dani.robertts account to extort him by asking him to send $1,000, or he would expose his identity.

After DeMay paid $300, Samuel Ogoshi made more threats.

The exchange went like this:

dani.robertts: Goodbye

dani.robertts: Enjoy your miserable life

Victim 1: I’m kms rn [I’m kill 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

The grand jury alleges that also on March 25, 2022, after Victim 2 was induced to send a naked picture of himself, the following messages were exchanged with Victim 2:

dani.robertts: Pay me rn [Pay me right now]

dani.robertts: $800

dani.robertts: And I’ll end this

dani.robertts: Deal or no deal

Victim 2: I don’t have that kind of money

dani.robertts: Haha

dani.robertts: I love this

Victim 2: I have $50 in venmo and a $100 cash

dani.robertts: Dude

dani.robertts: Now goodbye

dani.robertts: Enjoy your miserable life

Victim 2: Why

dani.robertts: I’ll make this go viral

On March 26, 2022, the following messages were exchanged with Victim 2:

dani.robertts: I will make you regret you life

dani.robertts: I will make u commit suicide

dani.robertts: I promise you I swear

Nigerian law enforcement cooperates

Earlier this year, agents from FBI Michigan traveled to Nigeria to conduct a cooperative investigation with Nigerian law enforcement officials, Totten said. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, a Nigerian law enforcement agency, arrested the three men who are facing extradition to the U.S. to face prosecution. The timeline for their extradition and a date for their appearance in the U.S. is unknown.

The FBI referred information to the EFCC regarding three additional Nigerian males involved in this same sextortion ring. These individuals were arrested by the EFCC.

The cooperation and assistance of the EFCC was essential in apprehending the defendants, said Totten, who extended his appreciation and thanks to the EFCC and the Nigerian authorities for their important partnership in this case.

“International cooperation is critical,” EFCC Chairman Abdulrasheed Bawa said in a statement. “In the last two years, this coordination has strengthened efforts connected with the extradition, deportation and mutual legal or other assistance between Nigeria and the United States involving Economic and Financial Crimes.

“We wish to express our sincere and immense appreciation to the EFCC and the Cyber Crime Team for the cooperation and significant contribution towards the prevention and detection of trans-national crimes.”

Totten and Tarascla thanked the following Nigerian partners and institutions for their assistance with this case: Honorable Chairman Chief Executive Abdulrasheed Bawa, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission; Assistant Director and Head of the International Cooperation Department Antoinette Oche-Obe, Central Authority Unit, Office of the Attorney General-Ministry of Justice; Director of Operations Abdulkarim Chukkol, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission; and principal Prosecutor Pius Akutah, Central Authority Unit, Office of the Attorney General-Ministry of Justice; Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Justice, EFCC; the Central Authority Unit of Nigeria’s Ministry of Justice; and the Attorney General of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Totten indicated that Meta Platforms, Inc., the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has been a good partner in this investigation, providing important information in a timely manner.

“We want teens to have safe, positive experiences online, and we work to help prevent and stop criminals from targeting them with sextortion schemes. This includes cooperating with law enforcement to help protect vulnerable teens from these horrific crimes and bring their perpetrators to justice,” said Antigone Davis, global head of safety at Meta, in a statement. “In addition to the work we do to protect teens from sextortion, we also helped found NCMEC’s TakeItDown, which allows teens to stop the spread of their intimate images online.”

Meta offers the following safety tips:

— Stop engaging with the person harassing you.

— Block their account to limit further interactions.

— Report them within the app immediately.

— Tell a trusted friend or parent what’s happening.

— Go to TakeItDown.NCMEC.org to prevent your intimate images from being spread online.

— Talk to law enforcement if you feel you’ve been taken advantage of.

The FBI suggests that teens and parents be selective about what they share online and be wary of anyone they encounter for the first time online.

They also should be aware that people can pretend to be anything or anyone online.

The FBI also suggests they be suspicious of people they meet on a game app and be cautious of content they create online. If they are getting messages or requests online that don’t seem right, they should block the sender, report the behavior to the site administrator or go to an adult.

Anyone with information about sextortion or who believes they are a victim of sextortion is asked to contact a local FBI field office, call 1-800-CALL-FBI or report it at http://tips.fbi.gov.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, county prosecutor’s offices, the Internet Crimes Against Children task force, and federal, state, tribal, and local law enforcement are working together to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children. For more information, visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. I

This case is being prosecuted by assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel Mekaru and Davin Reust, and investigated by the FBI, the MCSO and the Michigan State Police Cybercrimes Unit in Marquette with the cooperation and assistance of the EEFC Nigeria. The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Department of State assisted in seeking the extradition of the defendants.

Christie Mastric can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 250. Her email address is cbleck@miningjournal.net.