(WNY News Now) – BUFFALO, N.Y. — A 31-year-old California man has pleaded guilty to cyberstalking and aggravated identity theft in a case involving unauthorized access to at least 200 social media accounts and three victims in Western New York, federal prosecutors announced.

Max Yang Chen, 31, of San Jose, California, entered his guilty pleas before U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra Jr. in federal court in Buffalo.

According to the plea agreement, Chen compromised social media accounts belonging to hundreds of young women between March 2021 and June 18, 2023.

After gaining access, he searched for sexually explicit photographs and videos, downloaded the material and allegedly used it to intimidate or pressure victims.

Prosecutors said Chen sent explicit images to victims to demonstrate his access to their accounts, posted images on their social media profiles and sent sexually demeaning or violent messages.

In some cases, he allegedly attempted to extort victims by threatening to leave images online unless they provided additional sexually explicit material.

According to federal prosecutors, Chen gained unauthorized access to at least 200 social media accounts belonging to victims in Western New York and elsewhere.

He also directly contacted more than 200 young women whose explicit images he had obtained. More than 50 received explicit images of themselves from Chen, prosecutors said.

In total, investigators determined that Chen obtained and possessed hundreds of thousands of explicit images and videos involving more than 6,000 young women. The material was obtained through compromised social media accounts or other unauthorized means, according to the plea agreement.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Allen D. Davis II.

Chen faces a maximum potential sentence of seven years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the offenses covered by his guilty plea. The actual sentence will be determined by the court, and a sentencing date has not yet been announced.

Separately, Chen faces charges of attempted production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in the Central District of California. Those charges remain pending.