FBI accuses Penn Hills man of preying on teens in social media ‘sextortion’ scheme

PENN HILLS, PA. — A Penn Hills man is accused of co-running a child sex abuse scheme that involved using Snapchat to threaten teenage girls into sending him sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves, court records show.

Neighbors are reacting tonight to an FBI investigation that the bureau is calling a far-reaching federal “sextortion” investigation. 22-year-old Kaung Myat Kyaw is under arrest tonight, and a co-conspirator is still at large. The FBI says they attempted to sexually exploit and extort dozens of girls under 18.

DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts

According to the criminal complaint, their victims included girls — some here in Pittsburgh — and others in Virginia and New York, and authorities say the scheme also involved girls overseas. The complaint said the conspirators had been looking for a new juvenile each week for at least the past year.

In the criminal complaint, some disturbing details emerged of the suspect’s reported interactions with some of his victims. One message read, “I hacked for your nudes. If you block me, I will send them to everyone even your friends from school. I will post them on the internet along with you social infos. If you do not want that to happen, you have to make a deal with me!”

Another says, “I like having control, it turns me on. u know the joker, im a psychopath like him but a perverted one.”

Those activities were reported traced to a home on Jefferson Road.

“We never really interacted, just like a wave here and there,” Ashley Gallo, a neighbor, said.

Kyaw is charged with using cellphones, the internet and other forms of interstate commerce. If convicted, he could face a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.

Pack your patience: Roads, airports expected to be busy for Thanksgiving travel