Georgia Cybercriminal Charged in Phishing and Sex Trafficking Scheme
A man in Georgia has been charged with running a bold phishing scheme targeting professional athletes, which authorities say escalated to fraud, identity theft, and even sex trafficking.
Kwamain Jerrell Ford, 34, from Buford, faces multiple charges including nine counts of wire fraud, seven counts of computer fraud, and one count each of access device fraud, aggravated identity theft, and sex trafficking, based on a statement from the Northern District of Georgia.
Ford pleaded not guilty in federal court and will remain in custody without bail while awaiting trial.
The fraudulent activities reportedly began in November 2020. However, Ford was already serving time in federal prison after a 2019 conviction for defrauding nearly $325,000 through phishing attacks and misuse of stolen financial data.
Prosecutors say Ford impersonated a well-known adult film star online, enticing athletes with promises of explicit videos, and managed to gain access to their Apple account credentials, particularly those belonging to NBA and NFL players.
Simultaneously, he posed as an Apple customer service representative, using the victims’ personal information to access sensitive content that he claimed would be shared by this impersonated adult film star, according to court records.
The scheme tricked numerous victims into handing over their login credentials, which Ford allegedly exploited to obtain their credit and debit card information. It’s claimed he spent thousands on personal shopping sprees using the stolen financial details.
Months later, Ford began targeting female victims, presenting himself as an adult film star. He falsely assured these women that he could help boost their modeling careers and allegedly coerced them into engaging in commercial sex acts with various professional athletes, as per court documents.
Ford purportedly arranged travel for these women and negotiated payments for sex, utilizing fake identities to intimidate them and ensure their involvement in these commercial activities. Disturbingly, many of these encounters were reportedly filmed without the athletes’ awareness or consent.
It’s noted that much of this activity took place while Ford was already incarcerated for a similar crime. U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg commented on the situation, saying, “While serving time for stealing credit card numbers from athletes and celebrities, Ford is suspected of repeating his offenses.” He further described the allegations against Ford as particularly troubling.
FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Peter Ellis stated that agents are committed to preventing such schemes. He remarked, “Kwamaine Ford clearly did not learn from his past. He escalated his criminal behavior to include identity theft and trafficking while still in prison.” The investigation is ongoing.
