The FBI announced extortion charges against a West Chester man on Friday, saying he engaged in a "sextortion" scheme against a former girlfriend, blackmailing her in an effort to obtain sexually explicit chatter and photographs.
James F. Conner V, of West Chester, was charged with extortion, and arrested on Thursday, after he allegedly threatened to share sexually explicit photographs that he had received from a former girlfriend, if she didn't continue to send him sexually explicit materials after the two had separated, the agency alleges in a news release.
Conner began what the FBI called a "sextortion" plot, in an effort to obtain sexual favors from his former girlfriend, a student at a Boston-area university, law enforcement officials allege. The pair met initially through social media and developed a relationship in 2012, the FBI said.
During the course of that relationship, law enforcement officials noted, Conner allegedly obtained several explicit images of the student and, after the pair separated, Conner told the girl he would "release the sexually explicit images to her parents and Twitter followers if she did not continue sending naked pictures and engaging in sexually explicit video chats with him."
As of press time, representatives with the FBI had not returned calls for comment, however the release also noted that Conner allegedly told the girl to break up with her new boyfriend as well.
If found guilty of the crime, Conner could face nearly two years in jail and fines of up to $250,000.
