My 17-year-old died by suicide hours after blackmail on Instagram by strangers – cops’ new push is a warning to others
THE family of a tragic sextortion victim has thanked authorities for clamping down on the sickening trend that is threatening vulnerable youngsters across the United States.
Timothy and Tamia Woods’ only son James, 17, died by suicide two years ago after being targeted by sick online gangs.
SICK BOMBARDMENT
The online gang bombarded him with 200 messages in one day, demanding money in exchange for not publicizing explicit pics he was previously tricked into sending.
He sent them just over $100, but they wanted more.
A day later, James took his own life in his bedroom.
“They encouraged him to do that,” mom Tamia said.
SHARED PAIN
The Woods family sat down with The U.S. Sun at Crimecon in Nashville alongside South Carolina State representative Brandon Guffey, whose son Gavin also killed himself in similar circumstances.
They detailed the tragedy that befell James and spoke glowingly about the foundation established in their son’s name which aims to stop the worrying sextortion trend.
Do It for James aims to educate and protect a growing number of teens who are duped into thinking they’re talking to a boy or girl online before being blackmailed into sending cash.
James killed himself after being tricked into sharing a video of himself, which was then screenshotted by a gang who then started to demand money.
“They encouraged him to take his life,” Tamia continued.
“The last messages were, ‘End it now, end it now. You might as well kill yourself because you’re never getting rid of us. You better not block me because I’ll find you.'”
GO TO HELL
Devastated dad Timothy said, “There isn’t a place special enough in hell for certain people when they get there,” as he struggled to hold back emotion as James’ story remains so painfully raw.
“We continue to stand up for our children because if they don’t have us, who do they have?” his wife added.
“We refuse to let our kid just be another story. We’re not those kind of parents.”
Earlier this week in Ohio, the Woods’ home state, cops sent out an urgent warning for families in Noble County.
Someone was pretending to be a person called Elizabeth White, looking to chat with underage males on Facebook Messenger.
“The first way to protect our youth is to have these tough conversations with them. Explain they should not be adding or talking with anyone they have not met in person,” said Sheriff Jason Mackie.
“We need to talk with our children and warn them not to share images or videos through any platform they wouldn’t want their friends or family to see.”
TAKING ACTION
Tamia was delighted to see their response and told The U.S. Sun, “We are very pleased with the tireless efforts that our law enforcement officers are spending to ensure that our children are safe.
“This is a very sensitive topic for the majority of children and adults to speak about publicly, so the Woods’ family thanks you for speaking for us all about how evil, aggressive, and manipulative these predators are and the dangers of sextortion.”
From October 2021 to March 2023, FBI and Homeland Security investigations saw in excess of 13,000 reports of financial sextortion involving minors. There were a staggering 12,600 victims – mainly boys – with at least 20 suicides reported.
Between October 2022 to March 2023, the FBI witnessed a 20% increase in sextortion incidents fueled by financial gains compared to the same time period the previous year.
They described the increase as “horrific” and vowed to do everything in their power to protect kids from suffering similar fates to James.
“Protecting children is one of the highest priorities of the FBI,” said special agent in charge Douglas DePodesta of the FBI Memphis Field Office.
“We need parents and caregivers to work with us to prevent this crime before it happens and help children come forward if it does.”
HELP ON HAND
For Tamia and Timothy, the pain of losing budding track star James will never fade.
But they continue to spread the word of this sickening crime, which has been latched upon by gangs in Africa and beyond, making it doubly hard for law enforcement to act.
They are organizing a 5k Fun Run in Streetsboro City Park, Ohio, on July 20 and will continue to raise awareness while providing resources for both adults and children “to prepare them in case this or something similar happens to them.”
“Tim and I will not stop on our end,” Tamia said.
“We will keep on providing resources and fighting for our children.”
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.