Dunwoody Man Awaits Sentencing in International Sextortion Scheme

DUNWOODY, GA -- A man who pleaded guilty to stealing thousands of pictures of young women and their personal data through his computer will be sentenced in March to possibly many years in prison.

Michael C. Ford is under house arrest at his Dunwoody town home, according to 11 Alive, and wearing an ankle monitor. Ford, who is married and has a small child, faces decades in prison for “phishing” -- or scamming -- young women he met online into giving him access to their private computers, photos and accounts.

Ford was working at the U.S. Embassy in London, where he emailed official-looking notices to women and fooled them into thinking their Gmail accounts would be deleted unless they gave him their passwords.

He was arrested at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in December, where he, and his wife and child, were about to head back to London from Atlanta.

While he awaits sentencing, Ford is under a $50,000 bond, and ordered by the court to stay off computers and cell phones. The charges facing Ford carry a maximum of 100 years in prison.

Read 11 Alive’s report by clicking here.