Overview
- Ryan Last, a 17-year-old from California, died by suicide in 2022 after being sextorted online by someone posing as a young woman demanding money to suppress explicit images.
- Ivorian police arrested Alfred Kassi, Oumarou Ouedraogo, Moussa Diaby, and Oumar Cisse in April 2025 for their involvement in the sextortion scheme targeting victims across multiple countries.
- Evidence found on Kassi’s phone at the time of his arrest linked him directly to the extortion of Last, including payment demands and messages threatening to disseminate photos.
- Due to Côte d’Ivoire’s non-extradition policy, the suspects will be prosecuted domestically under the country’s cybercrime statutes, with ongoing collaboration between U.S. and Ivorian agencies.
- The FBI and Homeland Security Investigations have reported a sharp rise in sextortion cases, with over 13,000 incidents involving minors logged between 2021 and 2023, resulting in at least 20 suicides.