Latest news with #PaulineStuart
CBS News
19-05-2025
- CBS News
Federal agents combating child exploitation must also grapple with public reluctance to talk about crisis
Three years after her son's suicide, Pauline Stuart said she now has a better perspective on who her real friends are. Stuart's son, Ryan Last, was 17 and a high-achieving high school student in a close-knit family when he took his own life in 2022. He did so shortly after becoming the victim of a criminal "sextortion" plot. Undated photo of Ryan Last, who was 17 and a high-achieving high school student in a close-knit family when he took his own life in 2022 soon after he became the victim of a "sextortion" plot. Photo provided by Ryan Last's family Four men were charged last week in connection with a scheme to target and extort Stuart's son. But there is another pernicious problem Stuart is trying to combat: a public aversion to acknowledging and talking about America's crisis of child sex exploitation. "It's almost like people feel like they'll get 'cooties' if they simply talk about it," Stuart told CBS News in an interview from her Oregon home. "People I thought were my friends now seem uncomfortable when I walk in. It seems they feel talking about this tragedy is 'contagious' and can't seem to handle talking to me." Ryan Last's suicide is just one in a flood of child sex exploitation cases since 2022, including a distinctive and alarming surge in cases of what's now called sextortion, in which children are lured into sharing illicit images and later blackmailed by the recipients. A CBS News review of FBI data and reports from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children shows more than 20 million tips regarding potential child sex exploitation have been reported to safety officials in each of the past two years. FBI data showed the number of sextortion cases has quintupled since 2019. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children also told CBS News, "We've seen an alarming rise in the most urgent and dangerous threats: a 192% increase in online enticement, a 1,325% spike in AI-generated abuse material and a growing number of reports linked to violent online groups targeting children." But Stuart, child safety experts and federal investigators who spoke with CBS News said the silence and a dearth of news coverage of the crisis of child sex abuse may hamper their efforts to warn families, combat the problem and catch the criminals. "Parents just don't think it can happen to their children, so they just shut down conversations about it," Stuart said. "This is a topic that does make people squeamish, but we have to be direct and lean into the discomfort," said Adam Rosenberg, the executive director of the Baltimore-based Center for Hope, which helps prevent child abuse and assist victims. "If we adults can't talk about it, how do we expect our children to do so," Rosenberg said. The Justice Department, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino have launched efforts to raise the profile of the crisis. In a public campaign branded "Operation Restore Justice", the Justice Department executed a nationwide public campaign by federal agents and local law enforcement to track down offenders, execute arrests and file criminal charges. At least 200 arrests have been announced, including an Illinois man accused of producing illicit images of an 8-year-old, a West Michigan teacher alleged to have unlawful photos of a student and a Florida prison inmate accused of having child sex abuse images on a contraband phone. The Justice Department sought to publicize the campaign and its impact through targeted local news releases from FBI field offices and public remarks earlier this month from its headquarters in Washington, D.C., by Bondi and Patel. With network TV cameras focused on her speech, Bondi said, "Parents, you have to know: Your child has no right to privacy on the internet," Bondi said in her speech. "You have to monitor what they are doing." "These depraved human beings, if convicted, will face the maximum penalty in prison, some for life," Bondi said. "If you are online targeting a child, you will not escape us." FBI field offices and the 93 U.S. attorney offices, which have reach into local community media, spotlighted local arrests from "Operation Restore Justice," including an announcement from the U.S. attorney in New Jersey who publicized the arrests of four New Jersey men and one New Jersey woman on child pornography charges between April 28 and May 2. The initiative, which yielded hundreds of arrests, was covered in hundreds of media outlet reports that amplified the issue. Bongino, who was a talk-radio star and social media giant with an audience of millions when he took his post at the FBI, has used his digital platforms to press the issue. In a May 7 social media post, he wrote, "Operation Restore Justice is a powerful message: If you harm children in America, you will be given no sanctuary. There is nowhere you can hide. You will be hunted down, and you will be prosecuted." In a slickly-produced FBI video about the initiative, the agency shows agents working in the field in New York, Baltimore, Cleveland, Atlanta and Chicago, as part of the operation. "Crimes against children, particularly the crimes targeted in Operation Restore Justice, are some of the most heartbreaking and difficult cases we encounter." Justice Department spokesperson Kristina Mastropasqua told CBS News., "Parents, caregivers, and communities often do not realize the nature of the threat, how they can help in combatting it, or that they ought to be demanding safer online environments for their children." Rosenberg, whose Maryland-based organization has also helped advocate for tougher laws to combat child abuse, said it is critically important to remove the stigma around conversations about child sex exploitation. "We need to talk directly. We can't tip-toe around it," Rosenberg said. "We need to reduce the stigma in the discussion, as we did in the past with the topic of AIDS and cancer." Rosenberg said government agencies are wise to use their platforms and communication tools to raise the issue and encourage conversations about child sex abuse. An FBI official told CBS News the agency is seeing an upward trend in risks to children, in part because of advances in artificial intelligence technology, the pervasiveness of certain phone apps and criminal organizations that target children for extortion money. Stuart, who last week was notified of a series of arrests in connection with the extortion of her son, said parents need to be more assertive and resourceful in discussing the risks with each other and with children. "Parents think it absolutely can't happen to their kids," Stuart said. "And they're wrong. We had parental controls on Ryan's phone. We had limits on what sites he could go on. He couldn't download apps without our approval. It's such a hard subject to cover, but there have been so many boys who've lost their lives to this." Undated photo of Ryan Last, who was 17 and a high-achieving high school student in a close-knit family when he took his own life in 2022 soon after he became the victim of a "sextortion" plot. Photo provided by Ryan Last's family Mastropasqua said the Justice Department works closely with other law enforcement agencies and experts to share prevention tools. She said, "The Department's primary responsibility is always to the victims." Last week, the Justice Department announced arrests in connection with the extortion of Stuart's son. Among them was a citizen of Côte d'Ivoire, Alfred Kassi, who was accused of sextortion against Ryan Stuart and arrested by Ivorian authorities on April 29. "At the time of his arrest," investigators said, "Kassi allegedly still had the sextortion messages he sent to the 17-year-old victim in February 2022 on his phone." If you or someone you know might be at risk of suicide, there is help. In the U.S., call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or visit In the U.K., call Samaritans at 116123.
Daily Mail
18-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Mother of teenager who died by suicide over 'sextortion' scam speaks out after arrest of cruel African gang
The mother of a teen 'sextortion' victim who died by suicide is 'amazed' an international gang of 'evil' online scammers who allegedly targeted her son have finally been arrested in West Africa following a three-year manhunt. Speaking to Pauline Stuart, 56, also urged other parents to be vigilant so a similar tragedy does not befall their own children. Authorities have said the gang targeted 'thousands' of people - including minors - in the U.S. Canada and Europe. Stuart's high school senior son, Ryan Last, 17, was 'excited for life' but took his own life in February 2022 after sending intimate photos of himself to someone online posing as a 20-year-old woman. The contact, however, was allegedly a man in Côte d'Ivoire, aka the Ivory Coast, who repeatedly demanded money from the teen to keep the explicit photos offline. The terrified straight-A student, who attended Ann Sobrato High School in Morgan Hill, 22 miles south of San Jose, California, feared the photos would be leaked on the internet. A few hours later, he took his own life at home while his parents were in another room. 'I'm amazed because it's been over three years and kind of you get to a point that you don't think anything's ever going to happen about it,' Stuart said of authorities who made the arrests. 'I knew that they were still working on it. I was just surprised that it finally did happen. But I shouldn't be, because all the people involved were truly touched by Ryan's story.' The youngster's death prompted a huge international investigation which led to the arrest of ringleader Alfred Kassi. He was arrested on April 29 - when it was discovered that he still had the menacing messages he allegedly sent to Last on his phone. Three other men were also arrested. The probe was led by the San Jose Police Department, the FBI with assistance from Meta. A May 9 statement by the Department of Justice read: 'Through a lengthy, coordinated investigation involving U.S. and Ivorian law enforcement, the evidence ultimately led law enforcement to identify Alfred Kassi, an Ivorian citizen living in Côte d'Ivoire, as the individual allegedly conducting the sextortion. 'On April 29, Kassi was arrested by Ivorian law enforcement. 'At the time of his arrest, Kassi allegedly still had the sextortion messages he sent to the 17-year-old victim in February 2022 on his phone.' Three of Kassi's alleged accomplices were also arrested. Oumarou Ouedraogo was picked up for money laundering and two others, Moussa Diaby and Oumar Cisse, were arrested for 'sextortion crimes.' Another accomplice, Jonathan Kassi - unrelated to Alfred Kassi - was convicted in a California court in 2023 and sentenced to 18 months in jail for his part in the scheme. According to the DoJ, 'The government of Côte d'Ivoire does not extradite its own citizens, so these defendants will be prosecuted in their own country under Ivorian cybercrime statutes.' Stuart said the arrests do not soothe away any of her immense pain. 'There's no closure,' she said. 'Yesterday was Mother's Day. There's always going to be a huge hole in there.' She often gives talks about about her experience in order to warn other parents. 'Telling Ryan's story helps me survive,' she said. 'I hope people learn about it because even to this day, there are some who have never heard of of these scams. 'People say 'It could never happen to my family. My kid wouldn't do it." 'Well, we're the example that it could happen. We had parental controls on his phone. We were close to our kids, we spoke with them but it still affected our family. 'So people need to realize that this could happen to any kid, and my kid had a lot going for him.' 'He was a straight-A student. He was looking forward to going to college and experiencing new things. 'He was excited for life, and it still was able to happen to him. 'People should realize this could happen to any child out there, and we need to start talking to them before things could happen. 'So maybe if it does, they'll remember that it's okay - I can go talk to my mom, my dad, my friend, somebody about this.' The heartless scammers who targeted her son are 'evil,' according to Stuart. 'They can do this all anonymously and they don't feel like they're hurting anybody because they haven't met that person or that family that has been devastated by it,' she said. Stuart said the parental controls on her son's cell phone had blocked him from being able to wire cash abroad. Initially, he was told to send $5,000 but the scammers settled for $150 which was sent electronically to 'money mule' Jonathan Kassi, located in the U.S., using Zelle, and then he in turn forwarded it to his namesake in Africa. Last would have turned 21 on April 14 had he still been alive. Stuart and husband Hagen Last, 54, moved from San Jose to Oregon in order to be close to family and their college freshman son, Aidan, 19. The brothers were 'very close,' she said. They attended Scouts together studied martial arts. 'We chose to go and be surrounded by family,' said Stuart of leaving California. Stuart is still coming to terms with the grief. 'It's hard because there are always constant reminders of what I'm missing and milestones,' she explained. She lamented that her son is 'not going to be able to have a family.' 'It's really, really hard,' she added. 'It was bittersweet moving because we moved away from a house that we have so many memories of. 'But you also you move away from those memories because they can be hard and overwhelming for you because everything you look at reminds you of him.' She reveals that Elton John's classic Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was a favorite of Ryan's after he used it as a soundtrack for a school video project. 'Anytime I hear that song come on, it's hard,' she said. 'It will always tie him to me.' Ryan's death is part of a growing 'sextortion' trend where scammers target young boys as the FBI reported more than 18,000 cases in 2021, with families losing more than $13 million.
CNN
15-05-2025
- CNN
‘Sextortion' ring targeting thousands of minors worldwide was just disrupted by the FBI, officials say
It was news that Pauline Stuart thought might never come: The man believed to be responsible for the death of her teenage son years earlier is finally behind bars. 'It still seems a little unreal that it happened,' she told CNN on Thursday. 'I kind of believed that it would never happen, but law enforcement never gave up.' The suspect, Alfred Kassi, was recently arrested in his native country of Côte d'Ivoire in West Africa, more than 7,000 miles away from the Northern California home where Stuart's 17-year-old son, Ryan Last, died by suicide in 2022. US federal prosecutors say that Kassi and a group of three accomplices were all arrested in Côte d'Ivoire, charged for their alleged 'role in an international 'sextortion' scheme that targeted thousands of victims, including minors, throughout the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Spain, and Italy.' Because Côte d'Ivoire does not extradite its citizens to other countries, Kassi and his alleged accomplices will be prosecuted there under the nation's cybercrime laws, US officials said. CNN is attempting to determine if the four individuals have legal representation. Sextortion is a scheme where victims, including minors, are deceived into sending online perpetrators explicit images, and then blackmailed in exchange for money or the continued production of additional graphic content. US law enforcement agencies have seen an explosion in complaints from victims, leading the FBI to ramp up a campaign to warn parents from coast to coast. Ryan Last received a message on a school night in February 2022 from someone he believed to be a girl. Within hours, the 17-year-old, straight-A student and Boy Scout had died by suicide. 'Somebody reached out to him pretending to be a girl, and they started a conversation,' Stuart previously told CNN, fighting back tears as she described what happened to her son days after she and Ryan had finished visiting several colleges he was considering attending after high school. The online conversation quickly grew intimate and then turned criminal. The scammer – posing as a young girl – sent Ryan a nude photo and then asked Ryan to share an explicit image of himself in return. Immediately after Ryan shared an intimate photo of his own, the cybercriminal demanded $5,000, threatening to make the photo public and send it to Ryan's family and friends. The San Jose, California, teen told the cybercriminal he could not pay the full amount, and the demand was ultimately lowered to a fraction of the original figure – $150. But after paying the scammers from his college savings, Stuart said, 'They kept demanding more and more and putting lots of continued pressure on him.' At the time, Stuart knew none of what her son was experiencing. She learned the details after law enforcement investigators reconstructed the events leading up to his death. She had said goodnight to Ryan at 10 p.m. and described him as her usually happy son. By 2 a.m., he had been scammed and taken his life. Ryan left behind a suicide note describing how embarrassed he was for himself and the family. 'He really, truly thought in that time that there wasn't a way to get by if those pictures were actually posted online,' Stuart said. 'His note showed he was absolutely terrified. No child should have to be that scared.' In announcing the new arrests in the case, the Justice Department said: 'At the time of his arrest, Kassi allegedly still had the sextortion messages he sent to (Ryan) in February 2022 on his phone.' Medical experts say there's a key reason why young males are especially vulnerable to sextortion-related scams. 'Teen brains are still developing,' said Dr. Scott Hadland, chief of adolescent medicine at Mass General for Children in Boston. 'So when something catastrophic happens, like a personal picture is released to people online, it's hard for them to look past that moment and understand that in the big scheme of things they'll be able to get through this.' Hadland said there are steps parents can take to help safeguard their kids from online harm. 'The most important thing that a parent should do with their teen is try to understand what they're doing online,' Hadland said. 'You want to know when they're going online, who they're interacting with, what platforms they're using. Are they being approached by people that they don't know, are they experiencing pressure to share information or photos?' It's critical, Hadland added, that parents specifically warn teens of scams like sextortion, without shaming them. 'You want to make it clear that they can talk to you if they have done something, or they feel like they've made a mistake,' he said. Ryan's mom agrees. 'You need to talk to your kids because we need to make them aware of it,' Stuart said. The FBI was assisted in the investigation by San Jose police, the US State Department and the social media company Meta, which prosecutors said provided 'critical information' that helped identify the suspects.
CNN
15-05-2025
- CNN
‘Sextortion' ring targeting thousands of minors worldwide was just disrupted by the FBI, officials say
It was news that Pauline Stuart thought might never come: The man believed to be responsible for the death of her teenage son years earlier is finally behind bars. 'It still seems a little unreal that it happened,' she told CNN on Thursday. 'I kind of believed that it would never happen, but law enforcement never gave up.' The suspect, Alfred Kassi, was recently arrested in his native country of Côte d'Ivoire in West Africa, more than 7,000 miles away from the Northern California home where Stuart's 17-year-old son, Ryan Last, died by suicide in 2022. US federal prosecutors say that Kassi and a group of three accomplices were all arrested in Côte d'Ivoire, charged for their alleged 'role in an international 'sextortion' scheme that targeted thousands of victims, including minors, throughout the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Spain, and Italy.' Because Côte d'Ivoire does not extradite its citizens to other countries, Kassi and his alleged accomplices will be prosecuted there under the nation's cybercrime laws, US officials said. CNN is attempting to determine if the four individuals have legal representation. Sextortion is a scheme where victims, including minors, are deceived into sending online perpetrators explicit images, and then blackmailed in exchange for money or the continued production of additional graphic content. US law enforcement agencies have seen an explosion in complaints from victims, leading the FBI to ramp up a campaign to warn parents from coast to coast. Ryan Last received a message on a school night in February 2022 from someone he believed to be a girl. Within hours, the 17-year-old, straight-A student and Boy Scout had died by suicide. 'Somebody reached out to him pretending to be a girl, and they started a conversation,' Stuart previously told CNN, fighting back tears as she described what happened to her son days after she and Ryan had finished visiting several colleges he was considering attending after high school. The online conversation quickly grew intimate and then turned criminal. The scammer – posing as a young girl – sent Ryan a nude photo and then asked Ryan to share an explicit image of himself in return. Immediately after Ryan shared an intimate photo of his own, the cybercriminal demanded $5,000, threatening to make the photo public and send it to Ryan's family and friends. The San Jose, California, teen told the cybercriminal he could not pay the full amount, and the demand was ultimately lowered to a fraction of the original figure – $150. But after paying the scammers from his college savings, Stuart said, 'They kept demanding more and more and putting lots of continued pressure on him.' At the time, Stuart knew none of what her son was experiencing. She learned the details after law enforcement investigators reconstructed the events leading up to his death. She had said goodnight to Ryan at 10 p.m. and described him as her usually happy son. By 2 a.m., he had been scammed and taken his life. Ryan left behind a suicide note describing how embarrassed he was for himself and the family. 'He really, truly thought in that time that there wasn't a way to get by if those pictures were actually posted online,' Stuart said. 'His note showed he was absolutely terrified. No child should have to be that scared.' In announcing the new arrests in the case, the Justice Department said: 'At the time of his arrest, Kassi allegedly still had the sextortion messages he sent to (Ryan) in February 2022 on his phone.' Medical experts say there's a key reason why young males are especially vulnerable to sextortion-related scams. 'Teen brains are still developing,' said Dr. Scott Hadland, chief of adolescent medicine at Mass General for Children in Boston. 'So when something catastrophic happens, like a personal picture is released to people online, it's hard for them to look past that moment and understand that in the big scheme of things they'll be able to get through this.' Hadland said there are steps parents can take to help safeguard their kids from online harm. 'The most important thing that a parent should do with their teen is try to understand what they're doing online,' Hadland said. 'You want to know when they're going online, who they're interacting with, what platforms they're using. Are they being approached by people that they don't know, are they experiencing pressure to share information or photos?' It's critical, Hadland added, that parents specifically warn teens of scams like sextortion, without shaming them. 'You want to make it clear that they can talk to you if they have done something, or they feel like they've made a mistake,' he said. Ryan's mom agrees. 'You need to talk to your kids because we need to make them aware of it,' Stuart said. The FBI was assisted in the investigation by San Jose police, the US State Department and the social media company Meta, which prosecutors said provided 'critical information' that helped identify the suspects.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Yahoo
Ivory Coast men tied to sextortion scheme that led to suicide of San Jose teen, DOJ says
SAN JOSE, Calif. - Four men in the Ivory Coast have been linked to an international sextortion scheme that targeted thousands of victims, including minors — one of whom was a San Jose teenager who died by suicide after being scammed online, federal prosecutors said. What we know Ryan Last, 17, was a high school senior when he died in February 2022. His mother, Pauline Stuart, later shared his story on the Dr. Phil show, explaining how her son was manipulated. "They pretended to be a girl," she said. "They sent a picture first to him and said, 'Now that you have one of us – send us one in return. Within minutes of them getting the picture, they demanded $5,000 from him." According to the Department of Justice, the scammers posed as a 20-year-old woman. Though Ryan didn't have $5,000, he sent $150 — but was then pressured for more under the threat of having his photo shared online. He died by suicide eight hours after sending the compromising image. One man tied to the scheme, Jonathan Kassi of Southern California, was arrested and convicted in 2023. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Dig deeper Prosecutors said Kassi did not act alone. He had four accomplices in Côte d'Ivoire who helped orchestrate the scam, which targeted victims in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Spain and Italy. A joint investigation between U.S. and Ivorian authorities led to the identification of Alfred Kassi — not related to Jonathan Kassi — as another key culprit in the scheme. He was arrested by Ivorian law enforcement on April 29 and, at the time of his arrest, allegedly still had messages linked to Ryan Last's sextortion. Three other alleged accomplices — Oumarou Ouedraogo, Moussa Diaby and Oumar Cisse — were arrested on April 25. Authorities said they helped launder funds obtained from victims. Because Côte d'Ivoire does not extradite its own citizens, all four suspects will be prosecuted under Ivorian cybercrime laws. The Source Department of Justice
