"We’re sending a message to the rest of the world. Michigan will not tolerate the exploitation of our children."

Thursday was sentencing day for two Nigerian brothers charged in a sextortion case that led to a Marquette teenager taking his own life.

Teens are being coerced into sending naked photos or videos of themselves and then are pressured to send money or be ruined. The consequences can often be deadly.

Vince Ruiz, Supervisory Special Agent from the FBI Detroit Office, spoke to Rhonda Walker and Jason Colthorp on Local 4 News at 7 a.m. about the rise in cases, how they work, and how parents can talk to their children.

Three Nigerian men have been charged in the death of a 17-year-old boy from Michigan who died by suicide because he was blackmailed with a naked picture.

Police say a person posing as a woman friended the person on social media, gained his trust, and got him to send compromising private photos and then was immediately threatened that he if did not pay up, the photos would go public.

Sextortion might be a new term you probably never heard of, but it has already victimized a number of teens right here in the region.

The FBI in Detroit is warning of an increase in sextortion schemes targeting young boys.

The problem is that predators are too, and experts are warning parents about the dangers of online predators. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Detroit held a webinar Friday with sextortion survivors, their parents, experts and law enforcement officials. “Sextortion” is a type of online child exploitation. Blockers and filters are another way to prevent your child from harmful content and predators lurking online. It’s the predator’s fault, but we always have to make sure that’s always perfectly known,” Schneider said.