A Jackson man has pleaded guilty to federal charges related to a sextortion scheme that affected multiple victims, including minors, across various states. Marquez Cameron Jones Weston, 22, was involved in cyberstalking, interstate threats, extortion, attempted production of child pornography, and transportation of child pornography over the internet.
Weston sought to extort money and sexually explicit images from several female victims online. He has admitted guilt for attempted production of child pornography, transportation of child pornography over the internet, extortion, and cyberstalking. His sentencing is scheduled for August 27, 2025. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 15 years in prison. The final sentence will be determined by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The announcement was made by Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Lemon of the Southern District of Mississippi and Special Agent in Charge Robert A. Eikhoff of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The FBI is leading the investigation with support from the Sam Houston State University Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberly T. Purdie and Dave Fulcher are handling the prosecution.
To prevent sextortion schemes like this one, the FBI offers several tips: share selectively online; be cautious when interacting with strangers online; recognize that people may misrepresent themselves; be wary if asked to switch communication platforms; understand that online content can become public; seek help if suspicious behavior occurs.
Victims or those aware of exploitation via sextortion are encouraged to contact their local FBI field office or report it through official channels such as 1-800-CALL-FBI or the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Additional resources are available through Sextortion and Financially Motivated Sextortion — FBI.