STREETSBORO, Ohio — The Streetsboro Police Department announced on their Facebook page Tuesday that a Streetsboro City Schools student was the victim of a 'sextortion' attempt.
According to the post, a male student of an unnamed Streetsboro school reported the 'sextortion' incident to his mother, who then reported it to police.
"It is also critical that we take time to encourage our students that if they are a victim of sextortion or any other crime, they have to have the courage to share this information with their parents or the trusted adult in their life. Regardless of how embarrassing or “big” the mistake may be, families can work through any problem together," wrote Streetsboro Police Chief Tricia Wain and Streetsboro City Schools Superintendent R. Michael Daulbaugh in a joint letter.
What is sextortion? It is an online crime that happens when an adult poses as a same-aged peer to convince the victim to share sexually explicit pictures or perform sexual acts on camera. Sextortion is typically performed by people unknown to the students, and oftentimes by criminals living overseas who are virtually untraceable.
This is at least the third incident of sextortion targeting a Streetsboro student, according to the Streetsboro Police Department. In November of 2022, 17-year-old Streetsboro High School senior James Woods died by suicide after he fell victim to sextortion.
As a result of the rise of these cases, the Streetsboro City School District will be conducting a "Mental Health and Safety Summit" on May 10. James Woods' family will be keynote speakers at the event.
Editor's Note: The video above is from 3News' coverage of the sextortion case from November 2022 mentioned in this story.