Man posing as teen YouTuber gets 17 years for horrific global sextortion scheme

Enlarge (credit: Artur Debat | Moment)

Content warning: The following story describes instances of animal abuse.

An Australian man who pretended to be a famous teenaged YouTuber has been sentenced to 17 years for orchestrating what police are calling “one of the worst sextortion cases in history.”

Twenty-nine-year-old Muhammad Zain Ul Abideen Rasheed blackmailed hundreds of victims across 20 countries, ultimately pleading guilty to 119 charges involving 286 people. Most victims were children, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said in a press release confirming that Rasheed targeted at least 180 kids under 16.