Feds: More of Indiana man's sextortion victims found

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INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana man accused of coercing two teenage boys into making sexually explicit videos will be formally charged after investigators tracked down yet more alleged victims of his online exploitation, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.

Richard Finkbiner, 39, who has been held without bond since his April 6 arrest on preliminary charges of child sexual exploitation, will be formally charged later Tuesday, U.S. attorney's office spokesman Tim Horty said.

Federal authorities have also filed a criminal complaint listing preliminary charges of enticement and production of child pornography against Finkbiner, of Brazil, Ind. If convicted on the sexual exploitation charge, Finkbiner could face up to 30 years in prison. The enticement and pornography counts carry punishments of 15 years to life.

Federal defender William Marsh, who was appointed to represent Finkbiner, didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

In the criminal complaint, prosecutors allege that Finkbiner secretly recorded a 14-year-old Michigan boy and another in Maryland performing sexual acts during anonymous video chats, then threatened to post the videos on gay porn sites unless they made more videos for his private use. The complaint says he referred to the boy in Michigan as his "cam slave."

Since Finkbiner's arrest, investigators have discovered teenage boys in other states who may have been victimized by him, Horty said.

When investigators first examined Finkbiner's home computer, they found thousands of explicit video files depicting hundreds of minor victims, authorities say. During questioning by FBI agents, Finkbiner estimated that he had coerced at least 100 young people into making explicit videos, according to the complaint. Prosecutors say the case is an example of "sextortion," a crime in which predators catch victims in embarrassing situations online and threaten to expose them unless they create sexually explicit photos or videos.