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Sextortion scams targeting men and boys more than doubled last year: New West police

Victims are contacted online by someone using a fake account and usually posing as a woman

FILE PHOTO: A simple, very dark night time image of hands on an illuminated keyboard typing. Shady person wearing a hood at a computer or laptop in the dark.
FILE PHOTO: A simple, very dark night time image of hands on an illuminated keyboard typing. Shady person wearing a hood at a computer or laptop in the dark. Photo by Lincoln Beddoe /Getty Images/iStockphoto

Police in New Westminster are warning about a rise in sextortion cases targeting boys and men.

The victims are contacted online by someone using a fake account and usually posing as a woman. They set their location nearby and ask the target to send sexually explicit photos, then threaten to release them unless they pay a ransom.

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The demands often come from international organized crime networks.

Ninety-one per cent of sextortion victims are men and 79 per cent of the scammers use Intagram or Snapchat, according to the Canadian Centre for Child Protection.

In New Westminster alone, sextortion cases more than doubled from 12 in 2021 to 29 in 2022.

“Victims rarely have any idea what to do,” said New West police Sgt. Andrew Leaver. “They’re in a state of panic and are often dealing with tremendous fear, shame and significant financial loss.”

Leaver said this type of crime is likely underreported and police urge anyone who’s been victimized to come forward.

Police urge victims not to pay money or comply with the fraudsters. Instead, investigators say they should block the scammer, but to keep the social media messages and talk to someone they trust.

People targeted by a sextortion scam can call New Westminster police at 604-525-5411.

jruttle@postmedia.com

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