Erie indictment alleges Snapchat accounts hacked for explicit images – Erie Times-News

Meadville resident is accused of heading 7-person conspiracy that hacked accounts and put images and videos online without users’ consent. Some images showed child sexual abuse, U.S. attorney says.Indictment returned in U.S. District Court in Erie charges 6 defendants from Pennsylvania, one from North Carolina in Snapchat hacksCharges include conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theftBased on indictment, case is focused on hacks on users’ accounts in 25-county federal Western District of Pennsylvania, which includes Erie, six other counties in northwestern PennsylvaniaBetween March 2020 to October 2022, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Erie, at least 33 users of the Snapchat social media platform had their accounts hacked.Sexually explicit photos and videos of the victims were then shared, traded or sold online without their knowledge or consent, and some of the images depicted child pornography, including child sexual abuse, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.A 33-year-old Meadville resident is accused of heading the seven-person conspiracy behind the hacks and the illegal dissemination of the images. He and some of his co-defendants are also accused of providing scripts to teach others how to hack Snapchat accounts.A federal grand jury in Erie has indicted the Meadville resident, Richard A. Martz Jr.
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