Screening of “Sextortion” Documentary Planned for 10 Wyoming Communities

The screenings are intended to help teenagers and their families recognize and not fall victim to the insidious cyber-sex crime, and learn how to report it to the proper authorities.

The United States Attorney’s Office is partnering with the Governor’s Human Trafficking Task Force, Uprising, the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Wyoming Division of Victim Services to screen the documentary “Sextortion: The Hidden Pandemic” in communities across Wyoming in the coming months.

The first screening will occur at 6:00 p.m. on Jan. 18, 2023, in the Surburgg/Prentice Auditorium at Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne. The second screening will be at 6:00 p.m. on Jan. 19, 2023, at Laramie High School in Laramie.

Each event will include a screening of the film, followed by a panel discussion on current trends in Wyoming and tips on how to keep children safer.

“Sextortion is a serious crime that occurs when someone threatens to distribute your private and sensitive material if you don’t provide images or favors that are sexual in nature or money,” said Acting United States Attorney Nicholas Vassallo. “This documentary film helps parents, children, teenagers, and young adults identify sextortion attempts, and it explains how to report the crime if it happens to them.”

The following is a list of tentative dates and locations:

• January 18 –  Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne
• January 19 – Laramie High School in Laramie
• February 1 – Cody
• February 2 – Sheridan
• March 21 – Fort Washakie/Riverton
• March 22 – Lander
• April 4 – Casper
• April 5 – Gillette
• May 22 – Rock Springs
• May 23 – Evanston

A time and place for the Cody screening of “Sextortion: The Hidden Pandemic” has yet to be determined.

Any person or agency interested in hosting the film in their community can contact the United States Attorney’s Office’s Victim/Witness Coordinator, Yulonda Candelario, at 307-772-2124.