PORTLAND, OR - After an investigation spanning several months Lyle G. Gage Jr., 55, was arrested according to a news release from the Portland Police Bureau after he solicited a woman via social media offering to pay her for nude photos of her child.
According to the Sacramento Bee, the woman in question refused him and contacted the Portland Police Bureau in March. Gage was arrested on August 5th and officers searched his electronic devices. The officers discovered nude images and videos of a seven-year-old girl.
In a series of emails retrieved by authorities, they discovered that the girl lived in Wyoming with her 16-year-old sister. Gage had reportedly coerced the teenager with threats of violence. She had also sent explicit videos of her sister over the course of two years.
Sgt. Trevor Tyler, who is with Portland Police Bureau's Child Abuse Team told KATU that this type of coercion is quite common and that making a kid feel shame is part of the blackmailing tactic.
He explained, “If you don't do more for me, then this is going to be released. If you don't send me more pictures, I'm going to send this to all of your friends. I'm going to tell your parents. Your parents are going to know what's going on. And they will use this as a compulsory thing to make them continue to keep feeding the beast.”
Reporting of this type of exploitation has increased "exponentially," Tyler said. “I mean, really since 2020, once everybody was forced into an online world, right, as soon as we kind of went towards everything was done online, dramatically more so than ever before. I think that since the innovation of that we've seen it exponentially climb, and it hasn't slowed down."
He added, "They're not necessarily even wanting more images. They're wanting money. So it's quickly saying, 'Hey, you need to go get your mom and dad's credit card, and give me their credit card information.'"
The Portland Police Bureau told reporters that Gage is facing federal charges of sexual exploitation of children, receipt of child pornography, possession of child pornography, and coercion and enticement of a minor.
In an update published by the bureau, the PPB added that Gage is currently in the custody of U.S. Marshals and is being charged by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon. The department worked in conjunction with Homeland Security Investigations and Internet Crimes Against Children Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation.
The authorities are concerned that there could be additional victims. They are asking anyone who believes they're a victim or has information about the case to contact Officer Aaron Rizzo at aaron.rizzo@police.portlandoregon.gov.
According to the Sacramento Bee, the woman in question refused him and contacted the Portland Police Bureau in March. Gage was arrested on August 5th and officers searched his electronic devices. The officers discovered nude images and videos of a seven-year-old girl.
In a series of emails retrieved by authorities, they discovered that the girl lived in Wyoming with her 16-year-old sister. Gage had reportedly coerced the teenager with threats of violence. She had also sent explicit videos of her sister over the course of two years.
Sgt. Trevor Tyler, who is with Portland Police Bureau's Child Abuse Team told KATU that this type of coercion is quite common and that making a kid feel shame is part of the blackmailing tactic.
He explained, “If you don't do more for me, then this is going to be released. If you don't send me more pictures, I'm going to send this to all of your friends. I'm going to tell your parents. Your parents are going to know what's going on. And they will use this as a compulsory thing to make them continue to keep feeding the beast.”
Reporting of this type of exploitation has increased "exponentially," Tyler said. “I mean, really since 2020, once everybody was forced into an online world, right, as soon as we kind of went towards everything was done online, dramatically more so than ever before. I think that since the innovation of that we've seen it exponentially climb, and it hasn't slowed down."
He added, "They're not necessarily even wanting more images. They're wanting money. So it's quickly saying, 'Hey, you need to go get your mom and dad's credit card, and give me their credit card information.'"
The Portland Police Bureau told reporters that Gage is facing federal charges of sexual exploitation of children, receipt of child pornography, possession of child pornography, and coercion and enticement of a minor.
Press Release: UPDATE: Suspect Photo Released, Additional Victims Sought (Photo)
— Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) August 7, 2024
Link: https://t.co/akGXCIn04p pic.twitter.com/4UPzdSqGmP
In an update published by the bureau, the PPB added that Gage is currently in the custody of U.S. Marshals and is being charged by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon. The department worked in conjunction with Homeland Security Investigations and Internet Crimes Against Children Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation.
The authorities are concerned that there could be additional victims. They are asking anyone who believes they're a victim or has information about the case to contact Officer Aaron Rizzo at aaron.rizzo@police.portlandoregon.gov.
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