Man who stalked Kentucky victim online in extortion case ordered to pay $338,602

A man who harassed a married Kentucky church member for money to keep their online sexual relationship a secret has been sentenced to 22 months in prison.

Austin Michael Genay also is liable for $338,602 in restitution to the victim.

Chief U.S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves sentenced Genay on Monday in federal court in Lexington.

Genay lived in the Philadelphia area in 2015 when he met a man from Kentucky on an internet site and the two began a consensual sexual relationship online, according to court records.

Records in Genay’s case identify the Kentucky victim only as “T.”

However, details in Genay’s case are similar to those in a case involving Ralph Tackett, who pleaded guilty last year in connection with stealing more than $500,000 from a church in Georgetown where he served as treasurer.

Tackett’s case does not name Genay, but Tackett paid a man who stalked him online because he was “fearful of an exposure of his sexual exploits,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Tashena A. Fannin said in a document in Tackett’s case.

The prosecutor also said in a motion that Genay’s attorneys requested access to a sealed document from Tackett’s case to use in representing Genay, showing a link in the cases.

Tackett, 66, is serving a sentence of 33 months in federal prison and was ordered to make restitution of $532,807 to the church, which has not been identified in public court documents.

Genay said in a court document that T paid him for sexual content and encounters, and that he learned from Facebook that T was married and had children.

Without T’s knowledge, Genay kept copies of some of the messages they exchanged and kept screenshots of some of their sexual encounters.

Genay gave T false stories about needing money for car repairs, rent, bail and school, or said he was hungry, and even told T about family members dying, including his mother.

T gave Genay money willingly for some time, but ultimately tried to break off contact with Genay.

Genay then threatened to expose their relationship if T didn’t keep paying, according to court documents.

T kept asking Genay to stop contacting him, told Genay he didn’t have money to pay him and tried to block his number, but Genay contacted him from other numbers and kept harassing him for money, according to the court record.

“When T began refusing contact and monetary demands from Genay, Genay used the surreptitious images he had saved as a weapon against T,” the prosecutor wrote. “From then on, when T refused to pay Genay, Genay would resend damning images to T to coerce T to go along with his demands.”

Genay ultimately pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one charge of stalking.

The victim paid Genay $468,418 between August 2015 and July 2019, according to the court record.

Reeves ruled that Genay was liable for repaying $338,602 of that amount. The amount was less to account for the fact that T paid some of the money willingly.

Genay, now 30, told Reeves in court Monday that he had been addicted to opioid drugs during the time he was defrauding T but got sober after the FBI contacted him.

“I am not who I was back then,” Genay said.

Reeves imposed a sentence near the top of the advisory range and ordered that Genay begin serving his sentence immediately. He was taken into custody in the courtroom.