–By Nadia Ntiamoah
A Ghanaian, Cross Abu Cole, is facing federal charges in the United States after allegedly attempting to extort $200 from a victim by threatening to release sexually explicit photographs obtained through a cyber breach.
Cross Cole, 21, was arrested upon arrival at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas.
He was subsequently charged with interstate communications with intent to extort — a federal crime that carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
According to U.S. court documents, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) first received a complaint in October 2022 from a victim who reported receiving threatening messages via text.
The messages demanded a $200 payment through the mobile payment platform CashApp using the handle “$zettsa.”
The communication included nude images of the victim taken when he was a minor.
A second explicit photo was believed to have been retrieved from the victim’s Snapchat account, which had been compromised following a hack of his associated Yahoo email.
Authorities say the victim initially agreed to send the payment, but later reversed the transaction and reported the matter to his father.
Despite the reversal, the threats reportedly continued from the same phone number.
An FBI-led investigation traced the origin of the messages and associated activity to Cole, culminating in his arrest earlier this month.
He made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer and was remanded into custody.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango is leading the prosecution, while the investigation is being spearheaded by Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Mark Grimm of the FBI.
Though the current case involves one known victim, U.S. authorities have not ruled out the possibility of other victims. Investigations are ongoing.
The case has drawn attention due to the growing trend of “sextortion” crimes, particularly those targeting minors via compromised social media and email accounts.
U.S. law enforcement agencies have repeatedly warned the public about the increasing sophistication of online predators exploiting young people for financial or sexual gain.
If convicted, Cole faces severe legal consequences under U.S. federal law.
Neither Ghanaian diplomatic officials nor Cole’s legal representatives have issued a public statement regarding the charges.
