Sheriff's Office concerned by growing number of sextortion cases

he Rice County Sheriff’s investigators are seeing an increase in cases involving teen victims of what’s known as sextortion.

Prior to 2023, the Sheriff’s Office received about a dozen reports of criminal sexual conduct each year. That doubled in 2023. Already this year, Rice County investigators have received eight reports.

Most cases involve teens and preteens who accepted a friend request on social media then shared explicit photos of themselves with someone they thought they knew and trusted. The online friendships turn to blackmail with the “friend” demanding money or more images or videos.

The local trend mirrors a nationwide increase fueled by the growing number of youths with smartphones.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reported that in 2023 its CyberTipline received nearly 187,000 reports of online enticement, which includes sextortion. Between 2021 and 2023, those reports increased by 323%.

Sgt. Trevor Peterson and Investigator Matt Slinger say the blackmailers are generally adults who troll for victims using social media apps or online gaming platforms.

The NCMEC reports a “dramatic increase” in demands for money, finding teen boys the most common targets. In these cases, online predators often use fake social media accounts to pose as young girls of a similar age. In cases with teen girls, predators often blackmail the victim for additional pictures or videos to disseminate and sell online.

Slinger, who recently received training through the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program, and Peterson are part of Rice County SMART (Sexual Assault Multidisciplinary Response Team), comprised of local law enforcement, county prosecutors, probation officers and HOPE Center advocates.

The team has made several presentations to local students about sextortion and hopes to visit every school in the county. After every presentation, Slinger said several students have confided that they are or have been victims of sextortion.

One local case started online and ended with a sexual assault, according to Peterson. Some victims have resorted to self-harm. Nationally, a number of teen sextortion victims have died by suicide.

While there are resources available to victims and their families, the Sheriff’s investigators say the best protection for kids is parents who restrict screen time and pay careful attention to what their children are doing online.

“It’s not a trust issue,” Slinger said. “It’s about keeping kids safe and how one mistake can have consequences for a lifetime.”

The Internet Crimes Against Children Program uses the SMART acronym to offer parenting tips for online safety:

Setup: devices, accounts, passwords

Monitor: online use

Approve: apps, games

Restrict: content, permissions

Talk: #StartTheConversation

Victims of sextortion or anyone who finds their loved one is a victim should not delete the app, the perpetrator or the images, all which can improve law enforcement’s chance of finding the perpetrator. There are also ways that images can be removed from the internet, but to do so, investigators need the original image which carries a numerical identifier with it online.

Peterson says the embarrassment, shame and self-blame victims and their families feel is understandable. His investigators only want to help youths and parents stay safe online, and bring perpetrators to justice.

“It happens a lot more than we see,” he said, offering some advice to parents: “If you see something on your child’s phone and you don’t know what it is, ask.”

— Compiled from Rice County press release

GET HELP Anyone who has been a victim of sextortion can call the Rice County Sheriff’s Investigations Unit at 507-332-6204. The HOPE Center in Faribault offers counseling and advocacy services for victims of sexual and domestic violence. Visit hopecentermn.org or call 507-332-0882. For more information and a list of resources, visit https://bit.ly/RiceCo_InternetSafetyResources. 32ce603c-049f-4211-89fa-ec6dfe164e85