BOSTON – A Pennsylvania man has pleaded guilty to engaging in a sextortion campaign against a Boston-area college student.
James F. Connor V, 20, of West Chester, Penn., pleaded guilty to one count of cyberstalking and one count of extortion. U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young scheduled sentencing for April 7, 2016.
In 2012, Connor and the victim met through social media and developed an online relationship. In the course of that relationship, the victim sent Connor naked pictures of herself through Snapchat and engaged in sexually explicit video chats with him using FaceTime. Connor preserved many of these images without her consent.
After the relationship ended, Connor attempted to continue communications with the victim and initiated a campaign of harassment and intimidation. He threatened to harm her physically and harm her reputation by publicly disseminating the sexually explicit images.
Connor also repeatedly threatened to commit suicide if the victim did not take his calls, and sent her pictures of him holding a knife to his throat with blood, which was later determined to be fake, dripping down his neck.
In September 2015, Connor escalated his campaign of harassment when he began blackmailing the victim and threatening to send the sexually explicit images to her parents and Twitter followers if she did not send additional naked pictures and engage in sexually explicit video chats with him.
Connor frequently employed a telephone and text message spoofing application that allows users to easily change telephone numbers to conceal their identity.
The charge of cyberstalking carries a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of extortion provides for a sentence of no greater than two years in prison, one year supervised release and a fine of $250,000.
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Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: Sex Crimes|Cybercrime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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