A married State Department employee has been arrested and accused of ' sextorting ' college students from his computer at the U.S. Embassy in London.

Father-of-one Michael C. Ford from Alpharetta, Georgia, allegedly hacked into computers of victims as young as 18, stole sexually explicit photos and then tried to blackmail them.

Authorities, who detained him at Atlanta's Hartfield Jackson International Airport last week, say in one case he posed as a Google employee to obtain a password and sometimes referred to himself as a 'talent scout'.

Michael C. Ford appeared in federal court in Georgia to answer charges he hacked into several computers to steal explicit photos from young women and then blackmailed the victims

Father-of-one Michael C. Ford from Alpharetta, Georgia, allegedly hacked into computers of victims as young as 18, stole sexually explicit photos and then tried to blackmail them

Among the women he targeted were an 18-year-old from Kentucky and a 22-year-old from Illinois.

In one instance, Ford told an unidentified woman who complained of his hacking that he was innocent and would send out photos of her if she went to police , according to a criminal affidavit.

Prosecutors say Ford, who graduated from St Pius X Catholic High School in 1997, then threatened to post the images online unless the women complied with his demands, such as requests that they shoot videos of other women undressing.

In one email, he wrote: ' I want you to video girls in the changing room (of her gym). If you don't, I send your details and pictures to everyone.

'What do you say? Looks like you've made up your mind. Get ready for my email and post to go out tomorrow morning. Enjoy! '

He also said he would post their real name and address if they did not comply.

In one he referred to himself as a talent scout. He emailed one of the victims saying ' finally, I found you! What do you think? Nice a**. '

She then asked him where he got the pictures from, to which he replied: 'I'm a wizard, I have lots. Did you like it? '

He then said he could send it on to one of her friends and included a list of emails of the victim's acquaintances.

Allegations: He is said to have hacked into computers of the women from the US Embassy in London (pictured) and stole sexually explicit photos of them in the blackmail scheme

Detained: Ford, who is married and has a son, was arrested at Atlanta's Hartfield Jackson International Airport last week as he prepared to return to London following a trip to see relatives (file picture)

Ford is facing charges of cyberstalking and computer hacking. Authorities detained him last week at Atlanta's Hartfield-Jackson international airport as he prepared to board a flight back to London with his wife and their son.

Authorities in the US also obtained records from UK law enforcement agents regarding an e-mail stalking and harassment complaint they received in 2013.

UK law enforcement traced the e-mail messages back to the residence of 'Michael Ford,' and their who lived in South Croydon, London.

Two lawyers representing Ford didn't immediately return messages Thursday.

Pete Wellborn, a cyber expert and attorney, said Ford is a 'despicable human' if the charges turn out to be true.

According to the Atlanta Constitution Journal, federal prosecutor Mona Sedky vehemently opposed bond for Ford.

He remains in custody and is scheduled to have his first hearing on June 1.