CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA — Darnell Khan, 39, was sentenced to seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to his role in a scheme to extort and defraud military members that was operated from the South Carolina Department of Correction (SCDC).
Evidence presented to the Court showed that while serving a 25-year sentence in SCDC for voluntary manslaughter and attempted armed robbery, Khan smuggled smartphones into SCDC and used the internet to join internet dating websites. Once on the internet dating websites, Khan would pose as a young woman, target young men who were in the military, and solicit nude photographs. Once the photographs were received, Khan and others posed as the father of the young woman, claimed that the young woman was underage, and accused the military member of being in possession of child pornography. Khan and others then threatened to have the military members arrested or dishonorably discharged unless they paid money.
From January 2017 to July 2017, due to this extortion, service members transferred funds to Khan totaling $62,500.71, which investigators traced to at least 40 victims.
“Mr. Khan knowingly used deceit to prey on those who serve our nation. This is inexcusable,” said U.S. Attorney Adair F. Boroughs. “This case also shows that nothing good comes from smartphones in prison. Inmates use them to continue criminal activity behind bars, and we hope this prosecution helps state officials in their efforts to eliminate and disable contraband phones in prison.”
“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service will not tolerate these organized criminals targeting our service members,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Dillard, Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Mid-Atlantic Field Office. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect our Warfighters from sextortion crimes and hold these criminals accountable.”
“Mr. Khan deserves to be held fully accountable for his leading role in this reprehensible and criminal network targeting military service members,” said Special Agent in Charge Erin Carmichael of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Carolinas Field Office. “NCIS will not tolerate the existence of sextortion rings like this that degrade the readiness of our military force. NCIS thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their substantial efforts to keep our service members and their families safe from harm.”
“This is another in a long line of cases that would be stopped if we had the ability to jam cellphone signals in state prisons,” said Bryan Stirling, Director of SCDC. “I am calling on Congress to support a hearing on the Cellphone Jamming Reform Act and allow states to use technology to stop inmates from using these illegal phones to prey on innocent victims.”
United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel sentenced Khan to 84 months in federal prison, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. This sentence will be served after Khan completes his 25-year state prison sentence. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by DCIS, NCIS, and SCDC. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katherine Orville and Amy Bower prosecuted the case.
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| URL | |
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| Component | USAO - South Carolina; |
| OIG | Department of Defense OIG |