US man accused of ‘sextorting’ teens with threats to reveal risqué photos, texts

Federal prosecutors in San Antonio are moving to seize the BMW of an Austin man accused of trying to extort sexual favours from underage girls by threatening to reveal explicit conversations and photos of them.

Noah Scott Kramer, 28, who works in information technology, allegedly used Yubo, Snapchat and other social media sites to persuade two Bexar County girls, ages 13 and 17, to send him compromising photographs.

Then he allegedly threatened to send the photographs to their friends and families as a way to pressure the girls to send him more images. He was arrested after he had sex with the 13-year-old in his BMW 335i, according to court records.

Kramer is charged with coercion and enticement of a minor, attempted production of child pornography, cyberstalking and extortion. He pleaded not guilty and waived his right to a bail hearing. He is in jail awaiting trial. He could be sentenced to up to life in prison if convicted.

On Friday, prosecutors filed a civil forfeiture suit seeking to seize his BMW.

One of the incidents, involving the 17-year-old girl, dates to January 2020, when Kramer was 24, according to an affidavit supporting the federal complaint against him.

Kramer began communicating with the girl through Yubo, which is popular with teenagers, and then switched to Snapchat.

Using the Snapchat handle “Tyler-j919,” Kramer allegedly convinced the girl to send him a “sexy” photo. She sent him a picture of herself in underwear.

Soon after, Kramer began threatening the girl, saying he would send the photo and screen shots of their explicit conversations to her parents and friends if she didn’t send him nude photos of herself, court records state. To intimidate her further, Kramer told the girl what her address was, where she went to high school and where she worked, the affidavit said.

Kramer also told the girl that he wanted her to meet with a friend of his to have sex.

In May 2020, Snapchat responded to a search warrant that sought information for “Tyler-j919,” and investigators obtained additional communications in which Kramer demanded “hot selfies” from the girl.

“STOP (Expletive) STALLING OR ILL ALSO SEND EVERYTHING TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWER LIST,” Kramer allegedly wrote.

The girl sent him sexually explicit photos of herself. Her online exchanges with Kramer show she was complying because she was frightened and distressed, according to court records.

The threats continued for at least two months, and at one point, Kramer told the girl to add his friend “codgen19” to her Snapchat feed and tell the friend that she had seen him on Instagram and that she wanted to perform a sexual act on him, according to the affidavit.

Around March 2020, Kramer is alleged to have used the alias “Jake Codgen” on Yubo to contact a 13-year-old girl, and told her to switch to Snapchat. There, they had sexually explicit conversations, and Kramer tried to persuade the girl to send him nude photos, court records state. When she refused, Kramer allegedly threatened to send screen shots of their text conversations to her parents and friends.

He also sent her screen shots of her parents’ Facebook page to show her he knew who they were and knew how to contact them, according to court records. Kramer allegedly also sent the girl screen shots of her location to emphasize “his knowledge of her whereabouts and his ability to get to her.”

The girl sent a semi-nude photo of herself thinking it would make Kramer stop, but he demanded more, according to court records. Kramer also told the girl to meet with his friend “Tyler” for sex, or he would send the photos to her parents and friends.

One night, Kramer used the “Tyler” alias and texted the girl that he was outside her house and convinced her to sneak outside, court records state. She got into his BMW, and Kramer sexually assaulted her, the affidavit said.

On May 28, 2020, investigators searched Kramer’s house on Bluff Springs Road in Austin and seized two smartphones, which helped law enforcement establish that he was using aliases. The phones had a screen shot of the social media profiles of the uncle of the 13-year-old girl and screen shots of the girl’s Instagram friends. – San Antonio Express-News/Tribune News Service