Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

FakeNoose

(41,025 posts)
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 07:04 PM 5 hrs ago

Pittsburgh-area high school student facing more than 300 felony charges in child sextortion and catfishing scheme

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette link: https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2026/02/20/peters-township-pennsylvania-high-school-student-charged-felony-sextortion/stories/202602200083

A Peters Township High School senior is accused of orchestrating elaborate catfishing and sextortion scheme that targeted fellow students across multiple social media platforms, ultimately coercing the boys to send explicit photos and videos — including at least one filmed surreptitiously in a locker room.

Zachariah Abraham Meyers, 18, faces 304 charges ranging from sexual exploitation of and sexual abuse of children to unlawful contact with minors and wiretap law violations.

According to the criminal complaint in his case, Mr. Meyers posed as a woman on social media sites including Snapchat and TikTok, sometimes using photos of a Dutch adult-film actress to exchange photos and videos with the teens.

At least 14 teenagers sent explicit photos after they were contacted by accounts traced back to Mr. Meyers, many of which used some variation of the name “Claire Mauve.” The Claire Mauve account would eventually prompt some of the boys to move their communications to Telegram, a cloud-based messaging platform.

Catfishing is the term used to describe creating a fake or deceptive online persona to target others. Sextortion involves coercing intimate images from a victim and then using those images in extortion.

Police said Mr. Meyers coerced one of the teenagers to secretly record video inside the wrestling locker room at least six times, victimizing at least 10 other teenage boys who didn’t know they were being recorded. The teen told police that after not sending videos for some time, the person behind the account — allegedly Mr. Meyers — told the boy he needed something “to keep my silence.”

That same teenager, according to the complaint, was coerced into engaging in sex acts with two adult men at Mr. Meyers’ behest.

Another teenager told police that after sending photos to the Claire Mauve account, the defendant demanded $500 in gift cards, threatening otherwise to send the photos to the victim’s family and friends. When the teen ignored the demands, Mr. Meyers allegedly sent the explicit photos of the boy to a relative.

Mr. Meyers forwarded some of the explicit photos and videos sent to him to other victims, according to the complaint. In some instances, police said, he directed victims to seek out and photograph other students by name.
- more at link -



Here's another reason why kids shouldn't be walking around with cell phones during school hours. Parents really NEED to install safeguards on their children's phones. Arrgghh!
17 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Pittsburgh-area high school student facing more than 300 felony charges in child sextortion and catfishing scheme (Original Post) FakeNoose 5 hrs ago OP
a lot more going on here than just cell phones (school hours or otherwise) - - - -(nt)- stopdiggin 5 hrs ago #1
He's 18, so he's being charged as an adult FakeNoose 5 hrs ago #2
We all know that 18 - is some ways from fully developed ... stopdiggin 4 hrs ago #3
and still not big on the 'parental monitoring' thing. stopdiggin 4 hrs ago #4
Another candidate for a tRump pardon ornotna 4 hrs ago #5
I don't think so ... not in this case FakeNoose 4 hrs ago #8
A lil monster BlueWaveNeverEnd 4 hrs ago #6
Senior class president!!! BlueWaveNeverEnd 4 hrs ago #7
He didn't identify himself to the kids he was texting with FakeNoose 4 hrs ago #9
Wow, does Elon Musk have a job for this guy! hatrack 4 hrs ago #10
At 18, he'll do hard time. Well deserved. harumph 4 hrs ago #11
kid needs to get a heavy sentence. Decades. Melon 3 hrs ago #12
Peters.... figures. RPM 3 hrs ago #13
Agree. Live in the Pittsburgh area. Peters Township is a very wealthy area. debm55 2 hrs ago #15
They have a beautiful new gym/indoor sports arena Deminpenn 1 hr ago #17
This kid is fucked up Javaman 3 hrs ago #14
Kid was denied bail because he's considered a threat to the community Deminpenn 1 hr ago #16

stopdiggin

(15,259 posts)
1. a lot more going on here than just cell phones (school hours or otherwise) - - - -(nt)-
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 07:14 PM
5 hrs ago

Baby predator - (and full time, full fledged, predator in the making)
This 'child' needs to be on a list of individuals that need to be monitored closely ... For a long, long time going forward ...
(and, no - not joking - and not exaggerating)

FakeNoose

(41,025 posts)
2. He's 18, so he's being charged as an adult
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 07:25 PM
5 hrs ago

I have no sympathy for him. No, I'm referring to the kids he's preying on, his own classmates and fellow high schoolers. They are too innocent to realize how awful and wrong this is.

Parents have to be responsible for the safety of their children, and that includes having parental controls on their children's phones.

stopdiggin

(15,259 posts)
3. We all know that 18 - is some ways from fully developed ...
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 07:50 PM
4 hrs ago

So - there is some natural hesitancy there ...
But - can't say as I'm too dismayed at the 'adult' charges leveled here ...
And - you and I would probably both be surprised if the level of punishment meted out here in the end was anywhere close to what's deserving.

This 'kid' terrorized and preyed on other children - but then proceeded to actually follow through on threats of actual pain and damage when met with non-compliance.
Vicious, thuggish bully - proving willing to attack when thwarted - and quickly rounding into a dangerous type of individual.

stopdiggin

(15,259 posts)
4. and still not big on the 'parental monitoring' thing.
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 07:58 PM
4 hrs ago

Maybe for the 10-12 set ...
These are high school kids. Different kettle of fish entirely ... Setting up major conflict if attempted. And, frankly (to my mind) - just isn't going to work.

FakeNoose

(41,025 posts)
8. I don't think so ... not in this case
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 08:05 PM
4 hrs ago

The 18-year-old-kid is enticing the younger boys to send him photos of boys, not girls.
Chump wouldn't have much sympathy, I don't think.

FakeNoose

(41,025 posts)
9. He didn't identify himself to the kids he was texting with
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 08:08 PM
4 hrs ago

... however he did ask for photos of certain boys by name. How would he know any of their classmates' names, unless he was also a classmate? These kids were too innocent to be suspicious. That's how they got pulled in.

Melon

(1,242 posts)
12. kid needs to get a heavy sentence. Decades.
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 08:56 PM
3 hrs ago

He is lucky kids didn’t kill themselves. This is likely to have extremely damaged these kids and likely altered the course of their lives. .

RPM

(5,643 posts)
13. Peters.... figures.
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 09:23 PM
3 hrs ago

Too busy to care parents go to outer ring to avoid "crime" - those kids do more drugs and awful shit than those in my kid's city school

debm55

(58,677 posts)
15. Agree. Live in the Pittsburgh area. Peters Township is a very wealthy area.
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 09:46 PM
2 hrs ago

Last edited Sat Feb 21, 2026, 10:23 PM - Edit history (1)

Deminpenn

(17,363 posts)
17. They have a beautiful new gym/indoor sports arena
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 10:52 PM
1 hr ago

and are busy hosting WPIAL playoff games right now.

Deminpenn

(17,363 posts)
16. Kid was denied bail because he's considered a threat to the community
Sat Feb 21, 2026, 10:50 PM
1 hr ago

What I found interesting was the relatively tepid response from the Peters Twp district administration.

Latest Discussions»General Discussion»Pittsburgh-area high scho...