Four charged in online “honey trap” extortion ring targeting men with sex videos

Four young men have been indicted in Israel for running a large-scale extortion scheme that targeted men in the central region. According to the indictment, the suspects, identified as Zohar Davir, Eitan Hassel, Itamar Hanuna and Lior Aken, posed as women on social media, drew men into sexual conversations, and then arranged face-to-face meetings.

When the victims arrived, they were met by men with cameras who filmed them and threatened to expose intimate footage and messages unless they paid. Police said the gang demanded tens of thousands of shekels for silence, and the total extorted from victims reached about half a million shekels. In one case, a victim identified only as A said he was told, “the video of you will be spread in all the groups and the boss will fire you,” and described believing he had to pay or face murder.

The threats sometimes escalated to explicit death threats. One victim was told, “I will send this video. I have the number of your whole family and your friends too. I will meet you with your creator and I am not playing games.” Another was warned his video would be posted on TikTok and that a grenade would be thrown at his home if he did not pay.

A paid 12,000 shekels out of fear for his reputation, but when he refused to transfer more money, the suspects allegedly published a clip showing them chasing him to humiliate him. The covert investigation began in the Ayalon police unit in the Tel Aviv District after one victim filed a complaint, prompting detectives to identify additional complainants and gather video and message evidence. The defendants are charged with extortion by threats and extortion by force, while the suspects deny the allegations.