JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — On Tuesday, FBI Jacksonville, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and the Duval County Schools Police Department held a roundtable meeting to make parents aware of a rise in sextortion cases across Northeast Florida this year.
During the roundtable meeting, FBI Jacksonville says they’ve seen a 60% increase in sextortion cases this year across the entire state of Florida. Now they, along with other local agency partners, are urging parents to be aware.
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“We continue to see it increase,” FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley said.
He’s talking about documented sextortion cases in Northeast Florida.
Sextortion is when a predator asks a child for explicit photos on any online platform. After they get these photos, the predator threatens to publish the images if the child doesn’t send them more explicit photos. The demands can escalate and include threats of violence.
Law enforcement leaders attending the roundtable included FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley, St. Johns County Sheriff Rob Hardwick, and Duval County Public Schools Police Chief Jackson Short.
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FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Carley noted that specifically in Northeast Florida, they’ve noticed the number of sextortion cases increase this year.
“Last year, the numbers were very high, but in just the seven months this year, we’re already at the numbers for last year,” FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley said.
The goal of the meeting was to provide awareness to the public about some of the online threats law enforcement has noticed targeting children locally. Those include Sextortion Predators, Traveling Predators, and Predator Networks.
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And these agencies plan to keep the public aware throughout the year.
“We do a lot of outreach events doing ‘Be Smart,’ which is going out to the school districts and talking to the parents after the school day to answer questions and make them aware. To give them a better sense of the threats that exist there online and that leave some of their children vulnerable to be exploited,” Special Agent Carley said.
If you or someone you know is a victim of a sextortion-related crime, you are asked to contact FBI Jacksonville immediately at 904-248-7000. Or you can contact your local police agency.
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