Utah lawmaker wants to criminalize encouraging suicide in sextortion schemes
Feb 24, 2026, 4:37 PM | Updated: Feb 25, 2026, 7:24 am
FILE: Exterior of the FBI office in Salt Lake City. (Photo Credit: Paul Nelson)
(Photo Credit: Paul Nelson)
SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah lawmaker wants to make it a crime to encourage or help someone take their own life as part of a sextortion scheme.
Rep. Ryan Wilcox, R-Ogden, is the sponsor of HB221, which would increase penalties for sextortion in cases involving suicide. The bill has already passed in the Utah House of Representatives and is now before a Senate committee.
Internet Crimes Task Force saw 81% increase in sextortion tips
Wilcox told KSL NewsRadio’s Inside Sources the state’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received 1,264 sextortion tips in 2024 and 2,288 as of Sept. 2025 – an 81% increase in roughly a year.
That adds to a growing national trend. According to the FBI, reports of sextortion increased 242% from 2019 to 2022.
Wilcox said sextortion costs Americans around $80 million every year, but it also costs lives when bad actors blackmail their victims.
“We met four different families who had lost their children, their young men. They’re typically targeting between (ages) 15 and 25, and one of which, in my county — the young man was dead within 24 hours of first contact,” Wilcox said.
Read more: Utah teens are dying as a result of sextortion. Here’s what you can do about it.
He noted the practice is well-known among scammers.
“They get (the victims) to compromise themselves with something that they’re not prepared for, don’t understand, and then immediately turn to blackmail. And once they drain their bank accounts, (they) attempt to cover the crime (up) by encouraging them to commit suicide,” Wilcox said.
This story was adapted from a radio broadcast script using artificial intelligence. Every story, including those adapted with AI, is reviewed by a human editor before publication to ensure that KSL’s editorial standards are upheld.
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