What you keep on your computer could be very dangerous if the device gets stolen. In addition to personal financial information, thieves may also turn into extortionists. Take the latest case about a Minnesota man.
The Star Tribune reports that the case involves his theft of a laptop belong to a 20-year-old Ohio State University student late last year. Not only did the thief want the laptop, but was extorted the 20-year-old coed because of the incriminating content on her hard drive.
Demonte Johntrell Latimore sent increasingly menacing e-mails threatening to put nude photos and videos of the student from her laptop on the Internet.
Career Criminal
Latimore, a six-time felon from St. Paul, is being held in jail on federal weapons charges while authorities investigate him for alleged extortion in connection with the stolen laptop.
Back in December, the college sophomore reported that someone had stolen her Apple MacBook when she took a study break in the library on the Newark, Ohio, campus. Two weeks later, she began receiving disturbing e-mails demanding hundreds of dollars to keep the sender from posting her private photos online.
The incident illustrates what can happen when computers, hard drives, cellphones, flash drives or anything with a digital storage device falls into the wrong hands.
The thief was caught by the FBI's Cyber Crime Task Force in Minneapolis which the e-mail came from iwant [email protected], which traced back to a St. Paul address. Another, similar e-mail arrived in the woman's inbox from [email protected], which traced back to the same address.
What was so incriminating – nude photos of course!
Not only were there nude photos of the pre-med student but also videos of her having
Previous offenses for the 24-year-old Latimore include convictions of burglaries and car thefts, and St. Paul police were looking for him in February in connection with a series of armed robberies.
That’s a frightening story about a serial criminal that needs to spend time behind bars. I hope Latimore’s rehabilitation includes a Minnesota theft class and counseling.