New Jersey Man Posed As Girls Online To Obtain Nude Images Of Underage Boys

A New Jersey man posed online as girls to obtain nude photos of five underage boys which he then used to extort sex acts and cash from the boys. Police said that the Cumberland County man carried out the acts over a three-year period.

Shumar Murphy, 21, of Vineland, was charged Saturday with one count each of endangering the welfare of a child, sexual assault, theft by deception and extortion, plus five counts of possession of child pornography and three counts of criminal coercion, according to the Vineland Police Department.

Between 2016 and 2019, Murphy created fake social media accounts pretending to be various girls, which he would use to lure the victims into making contact and providing nude photos of themselves.

“Once defendant obtained these images from his victims he would allegedly seek to coerce them into engaging in sexual conduct with him in exchange for not exposing the images online,” the announcement stated. “In one instance, it is alleged that the defendant demanded monetary payment from a victim in exchange for not ‘exposing’ the intimate images online.” The ages of the victims were not revealed. Authorities also did not reveal how the incident came to light.

The announcement said it was possible there were additional victims who had not been identified. Police urged anyone with relevant information to call Det. Luis Rodriguez at 856-691-4111 ext. 4653. Authorities also provided a link to a Federal Trade Commission webpage instructing parents how to talk to their children about internet safety.

Last month, a 27-year-old Florida man was arrested and charged for allegedly having nude photos of an underage boy. A mother of a juvenile victim contacted the Marion County Sheriff’s office saying that she found nude photos of her son on Harrison's phone. When the mother and the son were interviewed, the woman said she found images of Harrison committing sexual acts on her son. The mother also found four nude pictures of her son that were sexual in nature.

During questioning, Harrison said he was trying to “teach the victim how to pick up a girlfriend.”

Harrison was arrested by Detective Billy Burleson of the Marion County Sheriff’s office and charged with four counts of possession, promoting or presenting material depicting child sex conduct, one count of lewd and lascivious battery promoting sexual activity with a victim under 16, four counts of possession of obscene material depicting child sex conduct, and one count of capital sexual battery on a victim under 12.