Chilling words cybersextortionist told friend of boy who killed himself when they targeted her hours after his death
MORE details have emerged about the suicide of a high school student who paid blackmailers $300 before taking his own life.
Police said criminals tried to extort $1,000 from 17-year-old Jordan John DeMay and threatened to release a nude picture he had been tricked into sending them.
Police investigating Jordan’s death soon reassessed why he died when a friend of Jordan’s came forward, telling them that the blackmailers had contacted her too.
“The nude picture was sent to a friend of Jordan,” Sheriff Greg Zyburt of the Marquette County Sheriff’s Office told The US Sun.
“She knew Jordan had killed himself, and she saw the picture, and then they started demanding money off her too.
“She told them he killed himself. They said, ‘Good,’ then she hung up and called the police.”
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Detectives concluded that Jordan was a victim of internet sextortion.
Even after some money had been paid, the blackmailers reportedly demanded more.
“They told him they had all of his Facebook contacts, and more from other social media, as well as his nude photo,” Sheriff Zyburt said.
Then they said they’d start to send the picture out. Jordan said he couldn’t pay them any more money.
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“He said you win, and that he was going to kill himself, and they said go for it,” Sheriff Zyburt added.
Jordan had taken his own life just six hours after contact was first made, according to police.
The MCSO does not typically report on suicides, however, DeMay’s parents asked for the information surrounding their son’s death to be released so a similar incident doesn’t happen again.
“This is an innocent young man who was a victim of cybersextortion,” said Zyburt. “In cybersextortion cases, scammers or manipulators target an individual through social media to gain their trust.
“They get the subject, the victim, to send compromising pictures,” he said. “First, they start sending them back and forth, and then intimate details about themself or relationships or that type of thing.”
After this, Zyburt said, is when the situation turns into blackmail.
It is believed by authorities that Jordan’s young age and emotions played a huge role in this tragedy.
“Imagine: You’re 17 years old, you’re embarrassed,” said Zyburt. “You’re scared to death and what do you do? And ultimately, he took his life.”
Zyburt urged people not to share intimate photos of themselves online.
“Once it’s on the internet, it’s there forever. But if you do, if someone starts to blackmail you, you need to notify someone that you trust in authority. It can be your parents. It can be a teacher, a counselor, a pastor, a police officer — someone that you trust.”
A GoFundMe page set up to help support the DeMay family has smashed its target of $2000, raising over $17,000.
Police took the unusual step of releasing details of Jordan’s death in the hope it will educate others as to the risks of sextortion and how best to respond to those risks.
On Wednesday afternoon, Jordan’s family and friends attended his funeral at Lake Superior Christian Church in Marquette, Michigan.
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No arrests have been made, but the MCSO stated that the investigation is still ongoing.
“We’re going to do everything possible to get the people responsible for this,” said Zyburt.
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