Athens man faces pornography, indecent behavior charges in alleged Roblox targeting of teen

Published 2:00 pm Wednesday, February 25, 2026

A multi-agency investigation has led to the arrest of an Athens man, who now faces charges in Louisiana on child pornography, indecent behavior with a juvenile, and criminal assistance to suicide.

According to the sheriff’s office in LaFourche Parish, Louisiana, Landen Westfall of Athens was arrested Feb. 9 in Limestone County and subsequently transported and booked into the Correctional Complex at Lafourche Parish.

Westfall, 24, has been charged with two counts of criminal assistance to suicide, 261 counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile, and 15 counts of pornography involving a juvenile, LaFourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre said in an online statement. Westfall’s bail has been set at $750,000.

The Birmingham Field Office of the FBI and the Limestone County Sheriff’s Office assisted in the joint investigation, which began in October of last year and stemmed from alleged contact Westfall had made with a teenager through the online game Roblox.

Juvenile detectives, said the LaFourche Parish Sheriff’s Office, “learned of a teenage girl who had sent nude images of herself to Westfall and that he had also encouraged her to harm herself. The two initially interacted online while playing Roblox, an online virtual game that allows multiple players to chat during gameplay. This led to conversations on other platforms and eventually video calls, but Westfall reportedly became verbally abusive and threatening toward her. He allegedly coerced the victim into cutting herself, and he also encouraged her to take her own life on two occasions.”

“If you are going to allow your child to use the internet or games where they can interact with strangers, you must take an active role in monitoring their activity,” Webre said in a statement announcing the arrest. “Talk with your children about the dangers of online predators and be sure you have access to all their accounts, even games. You must also educate yourself on popular ways that children try to hide information, photos or video on devices. Having such access is not an invasion of your child’s privacy – it’s being a responsible parent.

“Also remember that things created for kids – such as Roblox – can sometimes be exploited by predators,” Webre added. “Just because something is ‘made for kids’ doesn’t mean you should blindly trust it.”

“Crime knows no boundaries, and neither should we. Through strong partnerships and seamless collaboration, we unite to protect our children online and provide our law enforcement partners with the technical expertise and tools necessary to safeguard every community,” said David R. Fitzgibbons, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Birmingham. “Together, we are stronger, smarter, and more relentless in our pursuit of justice.”

Federal charges also are pending against Westfall as the FBI’s investigation continues.