An 18-year-old Pennsylvania high school student was arrested Friday after authorities accused him of running a massive \u201ccatfishing\u201d and \u201csextortion\u201d scheme that involved more than 20 underage victims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zachariah Abraham Meyers, a student at Peters Township High School in McMurray, faces over 300 felony counts of trafficking in minors, sexual extortion, intercept communications, corruption of minors, child sexual abuse material, unlawful contact with a minor, sexual exploitation of children, and criminal use of communication facility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A criminal complaint alleges that Meyers instructed the juveniles to produce and disseminate explicit images and videos of themselves, requested them to \u201cengage in prohibited sexual acts,\u201d and demanded $500 from two of the victims in exchange for him not sharing the explicit material. The victims ranged in age from 14 to 17, according to the court documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When one of the victims allegedly ignored Meyers\u2019 demands to pay the $500, the victim\u2019s sister received an Instagram message containing a naked photo of the boy, according to the complaint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meyers is being held without bail, court records show. Attorney information was not available for him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Peters Township School District said it was made aware of the investigation earlier Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Police have indicated that there is no immediate safety risk to our schools, and we will continue to cooperate fully with the investigation,\u201d a spokesperson said. \u201cThe safety and well-being of our students, staff, and families remain our highest priority, and we appreciate all the efforts of the Peters Township Police in this matter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The criminal complaint alleges that Meyers coerced another victim, who is 15, to pose as an adult on \u201cadult LGBTQ dating applications\u201d to \u201cengage in specific sexual acts with adult men.\u201d Meyers allegedly instructed the teen to record the acts, the complaint says. The victim told Meyers multiple times that he did not want to engage in the acts, it says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meyers is also accused of coercing the 15-year-old into recording the high school\u2019s wrestling team, the complaint alleges. It says that the victim secretly recorded the locker room on six occasions, and the videos show the team \u201cin various states of undress, including having only underwear on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Police were alerted to the scheme in December, according to an affidavit of probable cause. Court documents identified 22 victims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Investigators said a majority of the juveniles were victimized over social media, including TikTok and Snapchat. Meyers allegedly hid behind phony profiles of an Arizona man, a female adult film star from the Netherlands, and an unidentified woman, the affidavit says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll but one of the juveniles believed they were communicating with an attractive young female,\u201d authorities said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n