Illinois man sentenced to 75 years for ‘sextortion’ that started in Rogue Valley (copy)

Published 5:00 pm Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Nearly three years after authorities received a tip from a Rogue Valley mother that her daughter was asked by someone on Facebook to send nude images of herself, the man behind the crime received a 75-year prison sentence for his “sextortion” scheme.

Almost 30 other children in the U.S. and Canada also were victims, according to court documents and evidence presented at trial.

Michael A. Ferris, 44, of Mill Shoals, Illinois, was sentenced before Judge Staci M. Yandle in the Southern District of Illinois April 17, following his November 2022 jury trial on 25 felony counts of extortion, cyberstalking and production, distribution and possession of child pornography.

Following his prison sentence, Ferris will serve the rest of his life on supervised release. His Illinois-based lawyer did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Steve Bohn, a detective with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office who interviewed the Rogue Valley victim as part of the investigation and traveled to Illinois to be a witness in Ferris’s trial, expressed optimism that the sentence would mark a turning point for the dozens of victims in the case.

“I hope (this sentence) will actually close a chapter in these victims’ lives, to where they’re able to move and … have some sense of security, knowing that he is going to be in jail and not be released to harm them again,” Bohn said in an interview.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Ferris targeted teenage girls on Facebook and engaged in a pattern of extortion, commonly known as “sextortion,” from at least March 2020 until November 2020.

Through his investigation with the Southern Oregon Child Exploitation Team, Bohn was able to determine that Ferris, using a Facebook account under the name “Sammy Gray” — as well as numerous other social media accounts — followed a pattern of behavior.

The criminal complaint states that Ferris would ask the minor victims if their father or brother had ever walked in on them showering. If the victim answered “yes,” Ferris would threaten to call police and report them unless the victim sent him sexually explicit images. After receiving the images, Ferris would threaten to disseminate them unless the victim complied with his other demands. Even after Ferris’ victims complied with his demands, he would often still distribute their sexually explicit images to friends and family.

A criminal complaint stated that on May 8, 2020, Ferris contacted a 16-year-old Rogue Valley girl on Facebook using his pseudonym. The girl’s mother then called police.

That’s when SOCET took over the investigation, which included help from Bohn.

“I took the initial report from patrol division,” the detective said. “We ended up getting the online counts, issuing search warrants to go through the accounts, and that’s when we discovered there were numerous victims throughout the United States.”

SOCET passed on parts of the investigation to Homeland Security Investigations to identify the out-of-state victims and build the federal case.

“We assisted them with helping to identify the children as well as assist with helping them to build a case and prosecute Mr. Ferris,” Bohn said.

The detective noted that he wasn’t surprised authorities found additional victims.

“I was a little bit taken aback that there were numerous victims in such a short amount of time,” Bohn said. “He was just basically trying to victimize anyone and everyone he possibly could.”

During the investigation, Bohn was able to determine that the IP address of the computer Ferris used was registered in Illinois.

On Nov. 5, 2020, authorities used a search warrant to gain access into Ferris’s Illinois home. Although Ferris acknowledged he had used many of the electronic devices in the home, he denied using social media to communicate with minors or conduct child exploitation.

After Ferris was informed of the search warrant and other details of the investigation by officers, he told authorities he did not want to speak to them without a lawyer, and the interview stopped. It was almost exactly two years later that Ferris saw his day in court.

In an interview, Bohn reflected on how a tip in the Rogue Valley concluded with the conviction of an Illinois man known for repeated criminal conduct against children in the U.S. and Canada.

“I know there are a lot of victims that are abused online, and they have times they are not comfortable coming forward and telling their story,” Bohn said. “So I was impressed by the courage of the victim to come forward and tell her story.”

He offered advice to the community to avoid children becoming victims online.

“I would just tell parents to be involved in your kid’s life,” Bohn said. “Try to connect with them and know what they’re doing on a daily basis (so kids can) understand they can tell somebody they are being victimized online and/or in person.”