Canadian Man Sentenced to 33 Years in Federal Prison for Massive Cross-Border Sextortion Scheme Targeting Children Across the United States

A Canadian man has been sentenced to 33 years in federal prison after operating what federal authorities described as a large-scale online sextortion scheme that targeted at least 145 children across the United States over a span of several years.

Ramanan Pathmanathan, 40, of Toronto, Canada, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., after pleading guilty to one count of production of child sexual abuse material and one count of coercion and enticement of a minor.

Court records showed Pathmanathan conducted a prolonged online exploitation campaign between at least March 2014 and March 2021, using multiple social media accounts and messaging platforms to contact and manipulate children throughout the United States.

Federal investigators stated Pathmanathan primarily used Instagram and Facebook Messenger while posing online as a teenage boy from New Jersey in order to gain the trust of underage victims.

According to court documents, Pathmanathan targeted both girls and boys, including children as young as six years old. Investigators stated he coerced victims into participating in sexually explicit video chats, exposing themselves on camera, and performing abusive acts under threats, manipulation, intimidation, and emotional coercion.

Federal authorities stated Pathmanathan routinely recorded the abuse sessions and stored the material on digital devices under his control. Court records further showed he used threats involving exposure of explicit material to victims’ family members and friends when victims attempted to block his accounts or stop communicating with him.

Investigators also stated Pathmanathan sent victims sexually explicit material involving adults during online chats in order to instruct children on acts he demanded they perform during the exploitation sessions.

The case reflects the growing global threat posed by online sextortion networks that leverage social media platforms, encrypted messaging services, anonymous online identities, and psychological manipulation to exploit minors across international borders.

Federal investigators continue warning that online predators increasingly rely on impersonation tactics, fake identities, social engineering techniques, emotional grooming, coercion, blackmail, and digital extortion methods to gain control over vulnerable children online.

Authorities also warned that sextortion operations frequently escalate rapidly once offenders obtain compromising images, recordings, or explicit material involving victims. Offenders commonly threaten exposure, humiliation, harassment, reputational damage, or distribution of images to maintain psychological control over victims.

The investigation further underscores the increasingly international nature of online child exploitation cases, where offenders located in foreign countries can target victims across multiple jurisdictions simultaneously through widely accessible social media and communication platforms.

Federal authorities stated Pathmanathan had already pleaded guilty in Canada in October 2022 to related offenses and was sentenced there to 12 years in prison. The newly imposed 33-year U.S. federal sentence will run consecutively to the Canadian sentence.

In addition to the prison sentence, Chief U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg ordered Pathmanathan to serve 10 years of supervised release and register as a sex offender following completion of his incarceration.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation Houston Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force and the Texas Department of Public Safety investigated the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs coordinated Pathmanathan’s temporary surrender from Canada to the United States.

Federal authorities also credited the Toronto Police Service and the Crown Operations Office of Canada’s Ministry of the Attorney General for assisting in the investigation and prosecution.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Shinskie and Trial Attorney Kaylynn Foulon prosecuted the case.

The case was brought under the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood initiative, a nationwide effort focused on identifying, investigating, and prosecuting individuals involved in online child exploitation and abuse.

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