Four men in Côte d'Ivoire have been arrested in connection with an international "sextortion" scheme that targeted minors, including a 17-year-old from the San Francisco Bay area who died by suicide.
As previously reported, Ryan Last, a 17-year-old high school senior from San Jose, Calif., claimed his own life in February 2022 after falling victim to a sextortion scam. Last's death prompted an international investigation, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement.
Scammers Demanded $5,000 from Last, Threatened to Leak His Explicit Photo to Friends and Family
Last was exchanging messages with someone he believed was a 20-year-old woman who sent him explicit photos. According to prosecutors, the teenager reciprocated by sending back photos of himself — only to be hit with an initial blackmail demand of $5000 to prevent the images from being leaked to his friends and family.
The teen told the cybercriminal that he could not afford to pay the total $5,000, and they eventually settled on just $150. He paid them out of his college fund, but the scammer continued to demand more money from the teen.
"They, in other words, catfished my son and gained his trust through flirting and showing interest," Pauline Stuart, the 17-year-old's mother, said in a 2022 video posted by the San Jose Police Department on Facebook.
"People can pretend to be anyone. The fact that he was told they would send out or post the pictures on social media had a devastating effect on Ryan. He chose to end his life, rather than have the pictures distributed on social media. He believed his reputation would be destroyed and he was terrified of what his friends and family would think," Stuart added.
Scammer Still Had Last's Explicit Photo on His Phone at the Time of His Arrest
Law enforcement identified the person he was speaking with as Alfred Kassi, DOJ said in a statement. The teenager was terrified the photos would be exposed, so he took his own life. Prosecutors say that upon Kassi's arrest, he still had the explicit photos of Last on his phone.
The investigation found several other accomplices who allegedly helped Kassi move the money sent by Last. Ivorian law enforcement arrested Oumarou Ouedraogo, Moussa Diaby and Oumar Cisse. A U.S.-based accomplice, Johnathan Kassi, was convicted in 2023 by a California State Court and sentenced to 18 months in jail, the statement said.
The government of Côte d'Ivoire does not extradite its citizens, so Alfred Kassi, Ouedraogo, Diaby and Cisse will be prosecuted in their own country under Ivorian cybercrime statutes, per the statement.
The case remains under investigation by the FBI, the San Jose Police Department, the U.S. Embassy in Abidjan, Meta, and the government of Côte d'Ivoire.
