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Family of teen who died by suicide warns of dangers of financial sextortion
Washington — James Woods, a 17-year-old college-bound track star, had just gotten his driver’s license and posed for his senior yearbook photo when an online predator targeted him on Instagram.
James received 200 messages in less than 20 hours, according to his mother, Tamia Woods.
“It ranged anywhere from ‘I own you,’ to ‘you need to take your own life,'” Woods told CBS News.
The FBI calls what happened to James financial sextortion.
“Any child can be a victim of this crime,” said Abbigail Beccaccio, unit chief for the FBI Child Exploitation Unit.
It consists of minors being coerced into sharing compromised images of themselves by criminals who are often working together overseas. The coercion can take place on gaming and video-streaming platforms, or instant messaging apps.
“This is a predator that is solely interested in financial gain,” Beccaccio said.
Children, some as young as 9 years old, are told to send money, or the photos will be posted online.
From October 2021 through March 2023, the FBI tracked roughly 12,600 sextortion victims — all of them minors. Since 2021, at least 20 children who were victims of sextortion have died by suicide, according to the FBI, including James Woods.
“The most horrible phone call I’ve received, that my only child, my blessing…is no longer here,” Tamia Woods said.
The FBI is trying to warn parents and encourage victims to break their silence. In December 2022, the FBI issued an alert about what it described as a “staggering” sextortion scam that had targeted more than 3,000 boys.
That scam typically involved someone posing as a woman using a fake account and enticing the victim into sending explicit material, which the scammer then threatened to release unless the victim sent money or gift card codes.
Beccaccio emphasizes that tips from the public are essential to helping the FBI take action.
“That’s the intelligence, that’s the information that we have that makes law enforcement have the ability to act,” Beccaccio said.
The Woods family is working to shatter the stigma by sharing their story.
“You know, he was my only child,” Tamia Woods said. “And so I have to live through my memories, and that’s all I have now, are memories.”
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children advises parents and children to seek assistance before deciding whether to pay the extortioners.
“Block the suspect but DO NOT DELETE your profile or messages because that can be helpful in stopping the blackmailer,” the center advises.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or suicidal crisis, you can reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. You can also chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline here.
For more information about mental health care resources and support, The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. ET, at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or email info@nami.org.
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NEW YORK — Drones have been banned from flying over several New Jersey towns, the Federal Aviation Administration confirms to CBS News.
The FAA order covers nearly two dozen towns, including Jersey City, Harrison, Edison, Bayonne and Camden. It will be in effect until Jan. 17.
The order says no unmanned aircraft can operate below 400 feet within one nautical mile of the airspace specified in each area. Additionally, it allows the government to use “deadly force” against the drones if they pose an “imminent security threat.”
“Pilots of aircraft that do not adhere to the procedures in the national security requirements for aircraft operations contained in this section may be intercepted, and/or detained and interviewed by federal, state, or local law enforcement or other government personnel,” the order reads in part.
Several of the zones are centered around infrastructure, like power substations. Others cover areas like the Kearny, New Jersey port and airspace around military installations like Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in South Jersey, or airports such as Newark-Liberty International Airport.
Earlier this month, the Florham Park, New Jersey police chief told residents drone sightings had been reported above “water reservoirs, electric transmission lines, rail stations, police departments, and military installations.”
Where are drones banned in New Jersey?
North Jersey:
- Cedar Grove
- Bridgewater
- North Brunswick
- Metuchen
- South Brunswick
- Edison
- Branchburg
- Sewaren
- Jersey City
- Harrison, Essex County
- Elizabeth
- Bayonne
- Clifton
- Kearny
Central Jersey:
South Jersey:
- Burlington
- Evesham
- Camden
- Gloucester City
- Westampton
- Winslow
- Hancocks Bridge, Salem County
See the full order from the FAA here.
Mysterious drones over New Jersey and beyond
Drones sightings have been reported all month long, first over Morris County, New Jersey and then over several other East Coast states.
Federal, state and local officials have been demanding more information about where they are coming from and what’s being done to stop them. The FBI is leading the investigation and tells CBS News it has received thousands of tips.
While the White House says there is no known threat, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy recently sent a letter to President Joe Biden asking for more federal resources.
On Wednesday, a push from Sen. Chuck Schumer to give local law enforcement more ways to track drones was blocked in the Senate.
Check back soon for the latest updates on this developing story.
contributed to this report.
Two highway crashes in southeastern Afghanistan killed a combined total of 50 people and injured 76, a government spokesman said Thursday.
One was a collision between a bus and an oil tanker on the Kabul-Kandahar highway late Wednesday, said Hafiz Omar, a spokesman for the governor of Ghazni province.
The other, also late Wednesday and in the same province, was in a different area of the same highway, which connects the Afghan capital with the south.
MOHAMMAD FAISAL NAWEED / AFP via Getty Images
Hamidullah Nisar, the provincial head of the Taliban-run Information and Culture Department, told the Reuters news agency the other accident involved a cargo truck, adding that some of those injured in both collisions were in critical condition.
Omar said many of the injured were taken to hospitals in Ghazni and patients in more serious condition were transferred to Kabul. Women and children were among the casualties, he said.
Authorities were in the process of handing over the bodies to families, Omar said.
MOHAMMAD FAISAL NAWEED / AFP via Getty Images
Crash survivor Abdullah Khan, who was being treated in a Ghazni hospital, said he didn’t know how many people had either died or were injured.
“I got out from the bus myself and heard the sound of moaning. There was blood everywhere. Some people had head injuries and others had hurt their legs.”
MOHAMMAD FAISAL NAWEED / AFP via Getty Images
Traffic accidents are common in Afghanistan, mainly due to poor road conditions and driver carelessness.
MOHAMMAD FAISAL NAWEED / AFP via Getty Images