Secret Service Electronic Crimes Task Force Investigation
Leads to 35 Year Sentence for Texas Man in Sextortion Case
On January 9, 2019, Mark P. Barnwell, of Whitehouse, TX was sentenced to 35 years in federal prison for his role in a sophisticated online sextortion case involving 43 victims – mostly minor aged girls, located in nine judicial districts across eight states, including Illinois.
“Sextortion” is a term used to describe a form of online exploitation where a sexual predator obtains explicit photos of victims and threatens to publish them online if the victim does not comply with additional requests – typically additional explicit photos, sexual favors, or money.
In this case, Barnwell, operating under fake profiles on Facebook, posed as a modeling agent offering girls an opportunity to take part in a modeling job that paid $500-$5000 for modeling shoots. Under the guise of producing a modeling portfolio, Barnwell – a convicted sex offender, directed the victim’s poses which progressed from various stages of undress to sexually explicit. Once initial modeling photos were provided by the victims, Barnwell threatened to post the photos online if the victims did not continue to provide additional photos.
The investigation into the fake Facebook profiles revealed that Barnwell, using the above-described modeling reuse, contacted at least sixty-six females and ultimately obtained nude photos from forty-three minor victims in eight states. Evidence collected from devices owned by Barnwell included additional images and video relating to sexual exploitation of minors as well as videos where Barnwell surreptitiously filmed women using public restrooms.
“This case highlights our outstanding relationship with the Peoria Police Department, the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said William Shink, Resident Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service – Springfield Resident Office. “It is important for the public to know these predators exist and how to protect themselves online. We will continue to aggressively investigate these types of crimes and pursue those who choose to victimize our most vulnerable citizens.”
This case was brought as part of a nationwide initiative led by the Department of Justice, called Project Safe Childhood, which aims to combat child sexual exploitation and leverages federal, state, and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who use the Internet to exploit children.
