Middletown man who pretended to be teenage boy sentenced to 26 years in prison for coercing, exploiting minor girls online

CINCINNATI – A Middletown man was sentenced in federal court here today 312 months in prison for coercing minor victims online into creating nude images and videos that involved sexual conduct. 

William Scott Elam, 53, pleaded guilty in July to 10 counts of coercion and enticement and one count of sexual exploitation of children.

“There are real-life consequences to actions taken online,” said U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II. “Predators like Elam hide behind a computer screen while preying on vulnerable children. But the harm they cause is real, and so is the significant amount of time they will spend in federal prison to account for those actions.”

According to court documents, for approximately four years, Elam began online relationships with numerous minor females in at least seven states, particularly with vulnerable minors who had previously engaged in self-harm, had body issues or other social issues. He connected with girls between the ages of 10 and 16 on various online chatting apps and pretended to be a 14-year-old male.

Elam coerced victims into masturbating on live video calls with him. For example, he manipulated at least one victim into complying by threatening to harm himself if she did not do as he asked. He instructed another victim to self-harm via cutting on live video after learning the victim had a history of self-harm. Elam also coerced victims into sending him live sexual material by threatening to leak naked images he obtained of them. Law enforcement officers have identified at least 10 victims.

The defendant was arrested in October 2023.

Dominick S. Gerace II, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Adam Lawson, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the sentence imposed today by U.S. District Judge Jeffery P. Hopkins. Assistant United States Attorney Kyle J. Healey is representing the United States in this case.

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