June 15, 2020
Glenn Carstens-Peters/Unsplash
Shumar Murphy, 21, of Vineland, was arrested and charged for allegedly posing a woman on several social media accounts to collect nude photos of teen boys and then coerce them into having sex. Officials believe there may be more victims not yet identified.
A Vineland man allegedly solicited multiple teenage boys to send him nude photos using fake social media accounts and extorted some of the boys to engage in sex acts with him by threatening to post the photos online, authorities said.
Shumar Murphy, 21, created multiple fictitious social media accounts that portrayed him as various women. According to the Cumberland County Prosecutor's Office, at least five juveniles sent Murphy photos. One victim allegedly was coerced into paying Murphy not to post the photos online.
The incidents occurred between 2015 and 2019, and investigators believe there may be additional victims that have not yet been identified.
Murphy already faced similar allegations, according to the Daily Journal.
In that case the victim was in ninth grade, and he told police he was contacted by a woman via Facebook, with whom he exchanged nude photos. Then he was contacted by another woman who said if he didn't engage in sexual contact with Murphy, the defendant would post the images online.
Murphy is charged with endangering the welfare of a child, sexual assault, theft by extortion, five counts of child pornography, and three counts of coercion. He was arrested on Friday, Cumberland County Prosecutor's Office said.
Anyone with information related to this investigation should contact Vineland Police Detective Luis Rodriguez at (856) 691-4111, ext. 4653.
Parents are encouraged to discuss internet safety with their children. The Federal Trade Commission offers several tips on how to warn kids about the dangers of interacting with strangers online.
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