2 Nigerian men extradited to US to face sexual extortion charges after death of Michigan teenager

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — Two Nigerian men have been extradited to the U.S. after they were indicted for allegedly sexually extorting teenage boys and young men in Michigan and across the country, a prosecutor said Sunday.

Samuel Ogoshi, 22, and Samson Ogoshi, 20, of Lagos, Nigeria, are due to be arraigned Monday at the federal courthouse in Grand Rapids, U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said.

They are accused of running an international sextortion ring in which they posed as a woman and which resulted in the death of 17-year-old Jordan DeMay of Marquette, in the Upper Peninsula, from a self-inflicted gunshot on March 25, 2022.

The two men each face single counts of conspiracy to sexually exploit minors, conspiracy to distribute child pornography and conspiracy to commit stalking through the internet. Samuel Ogoshi also faces single charges of sexual exploitation of a minor resulting in death and attempted sexual exploitation of a minor resulting in death. The men were indicted in May.

Sexual extortion, or sextortion, involves persuading victims to send explicit photos online then threatening to make the images public if the victim doesn’t pay money or engage in sexual favors.

“Sextortion is a horrible crime,” Totten said in a news release. “To those who commit these crimes: we will pursue you around the world. And to those who are victims: please know we stand ready to help you.”

Totten didn’t say how many other victims there might be.

The news release didn’t say whether the Ogoshis are related.

Online court records in the case didn’t show any attorneys for the Ogoshis who might comment on the allegations against them.