The brothers targeted high school student Jordan DeMay by pretending to be a teenage girl and then soliciting sexually explicit photos from him, which they then threatened to send to his family and friends if he did not meet their financial demands.
The two brothers who ran a massive sextortion scheme that targeted over 100 Americans, including at least 10 minors and a 17-year-old Michigan boy who took his own life after being encouraged to do so by one of the men, appeared in court for their sentencing hearing last week.
Samuel Ogoshi, 24, and Samson Ogoshi, 21, of Lagos, Nigeria, will now spend the next 210 months in prison while also paying restitution to their victims and their families in an amount to be determined in the next 30 days, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Michigan.
A third suspect and fellow Nigerian national, Ezekiel Robert, is currently fighting extradition to the United States.
Among the victims targeted by the brothers was 17-year-old Jordan DeMay, a high school student who committed suicide on March 25, 2022.
The brothers targeted DeMay by pretending to be a teenage girl and then soliciting sexually explicit photos from him, which they then threatened to send to his family and friends if he did not meet their financial demands, according to prosecutors.
According to a copy of the grand jury indictment obtained by Inside Edition Digital, DeMay could not come up with the $1,000 the brothers demanded of him and instead sent them $300.
That resulted in continued threats from the brothers about releasing the images of DeMay, and culminated in this final exchange between DeMay and the two brothers posing as a young woman named Dani Roberts.
dani.robertts: “Goodbye”
dani.robertts: “Enjoy your miserable life”
DeMay: “I’m kms rn” [“I’m kill myself right now”]
DeMay: “Bc of you” [“Because of you”]
dani.robertts: “Good”
dani.robertts: “Do that fast”
Dani.robertts: “Or I’ll make you do it”
dani.robertts: “I swear to God”
The brothers also told another victim "I will make you commit suicide," while threatening to make their sexually explicit images go viral, according to the indictment.
"It's an absolute tragedy that three men from the other side of our planet came into my home which was secure while I was sleeping and murdered my son," Jordan's father, John DeMay, previously told Inside Edition. "There is nothing we can do about it."
John continued: "He lost his mind in embarrassment, and fear, and scared. They kept hounding him."
In each of these cases, the brothers would purchase hacked social media accounts and then start posing as young women by creating fake profiles. They then messaged the victims on social media after searching online to determine where they lived, the school they attended and the names and contact information of the friends and family members they would later threaten to contact with the victim's sexually explicit images, according to prosecutors.
The brothers did in fact send images of some of their victims to friends and family, putting together collages that included images of the victim and their friends and family as well as the sexually explicit photos, according to prosecutors.
The two brothers each pleaded guilty to conspiring to sexually exploit teenage boys after agreeing to a deal with federal prosecutors back in April.
In separate plea agreements, the two brothers both confirmed that the allegations being made against them were true and waived their right to appeal the case or their sentence.
“These defendants sexually exploited and extorted more than 100 victims, including at least eleven minors, resulting in the tragic death of a 17- year-old high school student,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “These sentences should serve as a warning that the perpetrators of online sexual exploitation and extortion cannot escape accountability for their heinous crimes by hiding behind their phones and computers. The Justice Department will find them, no matter where they are, and we will bring them to justice in the United States.”
Special Agent in Charge Cheyvoryea Gibson of the FBI Detroit Field Office also released a statement after the sentencing last week, saying: "Spreading awareness on sextortion is a top priority of the FBI here in Michigan. Our hearts and prayers are with the loved ones of Jordan DeMay and those affected by the criminal acts of these individuals."
If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1.800.273.TALK (1.800.273.8255)
