Two people have been arrested and charged in Nigeria over the alleged sextortion of an Australian boy who took his own life.
An Australian police investigation last year revealed the boy was engaging with an “unknown person online”, who then threatened to share personal photos of him with his family and friends if he did not pay $500 (approximately N623,875).
Police officers initially investigated the matter before being referred to State Crime Command’s Cybercrime Squad and the Australian Federal Police-led Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation.
Sexual extortion, or sextortion, is a form of online blackmail where someone is tricked or coerced into sending explicit images of themselves.
They are then threatened that these images will be shared if they do not comply with demands.
Detectives were informed last month that “two young males” based in Nigeria had been arrested and charged over the alleged sextortion.
NSW Police said the two men would be “dealt with locally.”
State Crime Command cybercrime squad commander Detective Superintendent Matthew Craft encouraged young people to report such cases.
He said in the past 18 months, sextortion cases had increased by nearly 400 per cent.
“We want young people to continue to report these cases and to never be embarrassed to talk to police,” he said.
