Laconia, New Hampshire native Ryan J. Vallee, 23, is headed to federal prison for 96 months after orchestrating a years-long computer hacking and ‘sextortion’ campaign targeting dozens of teenage girls, many of whom he personally knew. Vallee, who pleaded guilty to a 31-count superseding indictment, used stolen digital identities and spoofed communications to terrorize victims, demanding sexually explicit photos under threat of public exposure and further cyber abuse.
Vallee was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Paul J. Barbadoro in the District of New Hampshire. The charges include 13 counts of making interstate threats, one count of computer hacking to steal information, eight counts of computer hacking to extort, eight counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of cyberstalking. His criminal conduct spanned from 2011 to March 2016, during which he operated under aliases like ‘Seth Williams’ and ‘James McRow’ to mask his identity while infiltrating victims’ online lives.
According to court admissions, Vallee hacked into victims’ email, Facebook, and Instagram accounts, locking them out and often defacing their profiles. He didn’t stop at digital trespassing — in one shocking instance, he accessed a victim’s Amazon.com account, used her stored payment and shipping details to order sexual items, and had them delivered to her home. The psychological warfare escalated when he created fake Facebook profiles nearly identical to his victims’ — down to a single misspelled letter — then posted their explicit photos and sent friend requests to their families.
Vallee admitted to distributing sexually explicit images of victims to their friends and relatives, weaponizing shame as a tool of control. He used anonymizing text services to send threatening messages, demanding compliance or facing further exposure. When victims pleaded for mercy, he doubled down, threatening escalated harassment. His campaign relied on fear, manipulation, and technical exploitation to maintain dominance over his young victims.
The U.S. Secret Service led the investigation, with critical support from the Belmont Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney Mona Sedky of the Justice Department’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Arnold H. Huftalen. Vallee was re-arrested on March 16, 2016, while awaiting trial on earlier charges and has remained in federal custody since.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Emily Rice of the District of New Hampshire, and Resident Agent in Charge Tim Benitez of the U.S. Secret Service’s Manchester Field Office announced the sentencing. Victim identities have been withheld to protect their privacy. The case underscores the growing threat of cyber-enabled sexual exploitation and the federal government’s commitment to pursuing predators who weaponize technology against vulnerable minors.
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Key Facts
- State: New Hampshire
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Cybercrime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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