Steve Waithe, Sextortion, Massachusetts 2024

Grimy Times

A former college track and field coach has been sentenced to five years in prison for a scheme to fraudulently obtain thousands of explicit photos from over 100 women across the country.

Steve Waithe, 31, formerly of Chicago, Ill., and Somerville, Mass., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Patti B. Saris to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Among the terms of his supervised release conditions, Waithe will be prohibited from taking any jobs in which he could serve as a coach, teacher, mentor, or any similar role involving women or girls and his internet usage will be strictly monitored by probation.

Waithe pleaded guilty to 12 counts of wire fraud; one count of cyberstalking; one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud; and one count of computer fraud, aiding and abetting. He was arrested and charged by criminal complaint in April 2021 and subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in December 2021.

The scheme, which began at Northeastern University where Waithe worked as a track coach, involved Waithe requesting the cell phones of female student-athletes under the pretense of “filming their form” at practices and meets and then covertly sending himself explicit photos of the victims that had previously been saved on their phones.

Waithe also used anonymized social media accounts with usernames like “anon.4887” and variations of the phrase “Privacy Protector” to contact prospective victims, including some of the same student-athletes from the Northeastern University track and field team, claiming that he had “found” compromising photos of them online and offering to “help” get the photos removed from the internet.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy stated, “This defendant’s conduct is deplorable. He exploited his trusted role as a coach to college athletes to engage in a sextortion campaign that has left a trail of emotional devastation in its wake. We stand by the courageous victims who came forward and help this Office hold Mr. Waithe accountable.”

Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, Jodi Cohen, added, “The depth of deceit demonstrated by Steve Waithe in this case is deeply disturbing. This predator readily betrayed the trust of over 50 women, tricking them into sending him explicit photos which he then used to exploit and extort them. His reprehensible actions inflicted significant anguish on these victims who were living in fear of being so personally exposed.”

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