ST PAUL, Minn. — A St. Paul man pleaded guilty to operating a sextortion scheme against young girls that victimized more than 500 children, the Department of Justice announced on Friday.
According to U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger for the District of Minnesota, 31-year-old Yue Vang targeted young girls across the nation and world online through social media, including Kik and Snapchat, over the course of about five years.
Online, Vang posed as women to target the girls and coerced them into creating sexually explicit content to send to him. According to Luger, Vang then threatened to share the photos and videos with people who they knew, unless they made more sexually explicit content for him
"For example, in June 2016, Vang contacted a 15-year-old girl and threatened to distribute sexually explicit pictures of her to her classmates and parents to “ruin her life” unless she complied with Vang’s demands to send additional sexually explicit images and videos," Luger wrote in his announcement.
On Thursday, Vang pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography, one count of possession of child pornography and one count of interstate communications with intent to extort. His sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later date, according to Luger.
So far at least 500 victims have been identified and law enforcement agencies are continuing to identify more. People who may be a victim of Vang's scheme can visit the FBI's website or find more resources through the Department of Justice.
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