September 25, 2020
CHANDLER, AZ-
The Chandler Police Department is searching for additional victims in an ongoing online sexual exploitation investigation. On July 20, 2020, Chandler Police initiated an investigation into a subject using social media to lure exploitative images from people.
On September 18, 2020, Chandler Police arrested 26-year-old Chandler resident Devon Raj Sharma after previously serving a search warrant at his home.
The investigation revealed Sharma acted as a female on various social media platforms to target adult and juvenile females. Sharma would contact juvenile females online and ask them to send exploitative images. He would offer adult females he contacted online payment for exploitative pictures and videos, often using a modeling agency deception. In 2017 Chandler Police arrested Sharma for a similar case.
The Chandler Police Department has information that additional victims may exist in the Phoenix Metropolitan area. We ask anyone who believes Sharma targeted or victimized them to contact Sergeant Tom Lovejoy of the Chandler Police Department Computer Crimes Unit at (480) 782-4402.
Sharma is currently being held at Maricopa County Jail on numerous felony charges, including Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Fraud Schemes, Computer Tampering, Pandering, and Sex Trafficking.