After a Google Wallet account was traced to an Oklahoma man, Casey E. Meyering, 28, of Tulsa, was arrested on felony extortion complaints for operating a "revenge porn" website.The website, WinByState, was designed for men around the country to upload nude photos of women. Often, these images were stolen from the victims or uploaded by angry ex-boyfriends. The site described itself as "a user supported website where you can trade your ex-girlfriend, your current girlfriend, or any other girl that you might know." An investigation of the site began after a California woman discovered nude photos of herself on the site and contacted authorities.Women were allowed to have their pictures removed from the site if they paid $250 to a Google Wallet account, TakeDownHammer. The account was traced to a nonexistent storefront, and eventually to Meyering.Meyering was arrested by a cooperative effort of California and Oklahoma police. He is held in custody in Tulsa, fighting extradition to California, which reportedly has tough anti-revenge porn laws.According to the charges, Meyering "facilitated the posting of more than 400 sexually explicit photos of Californians and extorted victims for as much as $250 each to remove the illicit content." The California attorney general calls his actions "the definition of predatory." Court documents and a press release by the Office of the Attorney General indicate that at least one of the victims was under the age of 18 when the photographs of her were taken. Under federal law, child pornography includes sexually explicit images of anyone under the age of 18.Although Meyering is currently charged in California, with victims from several states, he could face additional charges elsewhere.Oklahoma blackmail and extortion laws are defined in 21 O.S. 1481-1488. Extortion is defined as "the obtaining of property from another with his consent, induced by a wrongful use of force or fear, or under color of official right." It occurs under the following circumstances:
- threat of injury to a person, his or her family, or his or her property
- threat of accusing the person or his or her family member of a crime
- threat of exposing shame or humiliation
- threat of exposing a secret
In Oklahoma, extortion is penalized by a maximum of five years in prison, and attempted extortion is penalized by a maximum of two years in prison.Blackmail is similar to extortion in that it involves written or printed communication in order to extort property or compel someone to do something against his or her will:
- Accusing or threatening to accuse any person of a crime or conduct which would tend to degrade and disgrace the person accused;
- Exposing or threatening to expose any fact, report or information concerning any person which would in any way subject such person to the ridicule or contempt of society; or
- Threatening to report a person as being illegally present in the United States, and is coupled with the threat that such accusation or exposure will be communicated to a third person or persons unless the person threatened or some other person pays or delivers to the accuser or some other person some thing of value or does some act against his or her will.
Like extortion, blackmail is a felony punishable by a maximum of five years in prison.
