GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Federal attorneys and investigators announced two of the three suspects accused in the global sextortion ring that resulted in the death of a 17-year-old Marquette boy have been extradited to Michigan.
The U.S. Attorney's Office - Western District of Michigan (DOJ) defines "sextortion" as the act of demanding money in exchange for sexual favors while threatening to expose their sexual activity if the targeted victim does not comply.
Totten and Devin Kowalski with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) held a press conference Sunday afternoon from Gerald R. Ford International Airport.
Watch the press conference here:
This comes more than three months after three Nigerian men were charged with conspiracy to sexually exploit minors (15 to 30 years) and conspiracy to produce child pornography (5 to 20 years). The DOJ identified them in May as 22-year-old Samuel Ogoshi, 20-year-old Samson Ogoshi and 19-year-old Ezekiel Robert.
Samuel was also charged with sexual exploitation and attempted sexual exploiting a minor resulting in death, federal attorneys say. The charge carries a penalty of 30 years to life in prison.
An additional charge against Samuel and Samson was announced Sunday: conspiracy to stalk victims using the internet, which carries five years behind bars for a maximum sentence.
Samuel and Samson were extradited Sunday. The DOJ says Ezekiel's extradition is still pending.
“Sextortion is a horrible crime,” says Totten. “To those who commit these crimes: we will pursue you around the world. And to those who are victims: please know we stand ready to help you. ... I am extremely pleased with how swiftly extradition efforts moved forward and am grateful to the FBI and our Nigerian law enforcement partners for their unyielding work to secure justice in this international sexual exploitation investigation.”
"Financial sextortion is a global crisis that impacts teens in our country and around the world," said Acting Special Agent in Charge Devin J. Kowalski of the FBI Michigan Field Office. "As this case demonstrates, the FBI is committed to working closely with our domestic and international law enforcement partners to prevent young men and women from becoming victims of this tragic crime."
We were previously told an investigation into the sextortion ring commenced after 17-year-old Jordan DeMay took his own life after being exploited in 2022. The victim's identity was released at his family's request, according to Totten.
Authorities say the suspects purchased a young girl's hacked Instagram account and used it to message DeMay, soliciting explicit photos from him. Totten says the suspects then threatened to release the images to DeMay's friends and family unless a ransom was paid.
We're told DeMay stated his intentions to take his own life, to which one of the suspects, Samuel, instructed him to do it quickly or the images would be made public. DeMay was found dead March 2022.
The DOJ alleges the suspects targeted more than 100 victims that included adults as well as minors. They are accused of buying hacked social media accounts and persuading victims to engage in sexually explicit conversations.
Attorneys say the suspects convinced victims, many of them in West Michigan, to submit photos of themselves that were later used for blackmail.
READ MORE: FBI, attorneys charge 3 Nigerian men in global sextortion case
The extradited suspects are expected to make their first court appearance Monday.
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