Saint Paul Man Sentenced to 43 Years for Vast Online 'Sextortion' Scheme
A Saint Paul man who earlier pleaded guilty to four felonies for coercing young girls to create sexually explicit photos and videos in a worldwide online extortion scheme learned his fate Wednesday in federal court.
Yue Vang, 31, was sentenced to 516 months—or 43 years—in federal prison Sept. 14 and will remain on supervised release for the remainder of his life.
Yang pleaded guilty in June 2022 to two counts of production of child pornography, one count of possession of child pornography and one count of interstate communications with intent to extort.
Prosecutors had asked the judge for a sentence of 72 years, while the defense asked for a sentence of 15 years.
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According to court documents, Vang created and used multiple internet applications and social media services including Snapchat, Kik and Skype to communicate with minor girls around the world.
Vang created fake female profiles to entice and coerce his victims to create sexually explicit images and videos to send to him. Vang would then threaten to disseminate the images to family members, friends and classmates unless the victims sent him additional images or videos.
Police say more than 750 minor females have been identified as victims, although law enforcement is working to identify many other potential victims.
Anyone who believes they may have been a victim of Vang’s offenses or who has information is asked to visit FBI.gov or Justice.gov.
“For several years, Yue Vang victimized more than 1,000 young girls – in Minnesota and beyond – through a vicious sextortion scheme. Using popular social media apps to prey on his victims, Vang’s manipulation began with compliments and expressions of flattery, which quickly turned into threats and extortion,” said U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger.
“There are few crimes as damaging and traumatic to a young person as sextortion. Vang is a predator who targeted innocent and impressionable young girls, exploiting their innocence for pictures and videos. He robbed them of their childhood and forever altered their lives and the lives of their families,” said Michael Paul, FBI Special Agent in Charge, Minneapolis Division.
“This case demonstrates the extensive reach of social media and the irreparable trauma one predatory individual inflicted on over a thousand young girls. However, the ensuing investigation highlights the immense collaboration and dedication of law enforcement partners throughout the country who worked tirelessly to identify the victims and hold Vang accountable for his atrocious crimes,” Paul said.
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