Tennessee man convicted of extortion, threatening children to perform sex acts on camera, sentenced to 27 years in prison

Caleb D. Jordan, 22, of Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, met three minors between the ages of 11 and 14 years old through an online video gaming platform. Jordan told the minors that people were coming to "get them" and threatened to kill or sexually assault their parents unless the minors created videos of themselves engaging in sexual activity, according to the Department of Justice.

Authorities say that Jordan exploited these minors to produce roughly 400 sexually explicit videos, some of which show the minor victims sobbing or showing signs of discomfort. Jordan gave them instructions to perform and record certain sex activities, and then tried to sell the videos over a secure internet chat program. In addition, more than 10,000 photographs and films of child sexual assault were found on electronic devices taken from Jordan's residence, court records show.

Jordan first pleaded guilty to the charges in January and was sentenced Thursday by Assistant US Attorney Carrie Daughtrey for the Middle District of Tennessee and Trial Attorney Kyle P. Reynolds of the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.

With the help of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) offices in Phoenix, Arizona, and Fort Myers, Florida, HSI Nashville was able to conduct a thorough investigation which led to Jordan's arrest more than two years ago.

According to the DOJ, this case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched by the Department of Justice in 2006. The initiative is led by US Attorneys' Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.