CATAWBA COUNTY, N.C. (WHKY) – A 22-year-old man is facing an extortion charge. Brandon Samuel Petritch was arrested by the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office Sunday (September 27) and charged with sexual extortion involving an adult. Petritch was jailed in the Catawba County Detention Facility without bond. His case was scheduled in Catawba County District Court in Newton Monday (September 28).

Under North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 14, sexual extortion occurs when someone intentionally threatens to share, or refuses to delete/retract, a private intimate or sexual image (including photographs, videos, or AI-generated depictions) to force someone to do or refrain from doing an act against their will.