Crimes against Children 9-21-12

Lancaster, NY
U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Joseph Marranca, Jr., 67 of Lancaster, New York, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara, to attempted receipt of child pornography. The charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years, a fine of $250,000, or both.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Marie P. Grisanti, who is handling the case, stated the defendant posted an ad on Craigslist.com that read, in part, “looking for a teenager.” Marranca engaged in chat conversations online and began talking with a person who indicated that she was a 14-year-old girl.

During those chats, the defendant asked the 14-year-old for pictures and made arrangements to meet her at a park. The individual that Marranca was actually chatting with was an undercover police officer. The defendant was arrested after he drove to the park to meet the officer. As part of the plea, Marranca agreed to the forfeiture of his 2005 Acura, his computer, and his cell phone.

Toledo, OH
An indictment was filed charging Duane Hill with sex trafficking of children and obstructing the investigation of child sex trafficking, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

Count one charges that on or about August 8, 2012, Hill recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided, obtained, and provided by any means, in and affecting interstate commerce, “A.W.,” knowing and in reckless disregard of the fact that A.W. had not attained the age of 18 years and that A.W. would engage in a commercial sex act.

Count two charges that on or about September 6, 2012, Hill provided false and misleading information to investigators assigned to the Northwest Ohio Violent Crimes Against Children Task Force who were investigating the offense charged in count one.

Boston, MA
A Whitinsville lawyer, who is also a Boy Scout leader and part-time middle school teacher, was indicted today in federal court and charged with using the Internet to entice minors to engage in unlawful sexual conduct and possessing child pornography.

Andrew Jonathan Myers, 34, originally charged via complaint last month, was indicted today with four counts of using the Internet to entice, persuade, or induce a minor to engage in unlawful sexual conduct and one count of possessing child pornography.

The indictment alleges that between May 7 and 9, 2012, and on June 28, 2012, Myers sent graphic e-mails to three minors upon whom Myers proposed to perform sexual acts. The minors were known to Myers through his work as a teacher or Boy Scout leader.

Myers’ actions were discovered when the mother of a 12-year-old boy in Colorado presented the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office with copies of e-mails and chats between an unknown 33-year-old man and her 12-year-old son. Through investigation, the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office traced the origin of the e-mails and chats to Myers. Myers also is charged in the indictment with enticing the 12-year-old Colorado boy.

Myers is further charged with possessing child pornography on a laptop computer which was seized from his home on August 21, 2012, pursuant to a federal search warrant.

New Orleans, LA
Benson December Coriolant, 30, of Orlando, Florida, was convicted today by a federal jury of all four counts of which he was charged, announced United States Attorney Jim Letten. He was charged with and convicted of sex trafficking of a child, conspiring with others to sex traffic a child, coercing and enticing an individual to engage in prostitution, and coercing and enticing a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity.

According to evidence introduced at trial, in late 2008, Coriolant met R.V., a 14-year-old female. Shortly thereafter, he began a sexual relationship with her. After convincing the minor that their relationship was one of boyfriend/girlfriend, Coriolant recruited R.V. to begin working for him as a prostitute in the Orlando area. Coriolant posted advertisements on multiple city-specific Internet classified ad websites offering prostitution services of the minor. Over the course of the next year, Coriolant forced R.V. to engage in dozens of sexual acts in exchange for money throughout the entire state of Florida. Coriolant forced R.V. to turn over the money she earned from prostitution either to him or one of his associates. Coriolant also provided R.V. with alcohol and illicit and mood-altering drugs as a way of numbing her senses and controlling her behavior.

In March 2010, Coriolant drove R.V., who was then 15 year old, to Kenner, Louisiana, to work as a prostitute. Coriolant used the New Orleans version of the online classified advertisement website to solicit individuals interested in paying for sex with the minor. Coriolant required R.V. to put the money she made from  —thousands of dollars—into a bank account for his benefit. He further forced her to account for all of her expenses, including personal expenses such as food, in a journal, daily letters, and text messages to him.

On April 24, 2010, R.V. was discovered by law enforcement authorities and, ultimately, sent back to Orlando with relatives. Once back in Orlando, Coriolant instructed R.V. to continue engaging in prostitution but to have sex only with regular, familiar clients because of concerns with law enforcement finding her.

In May 2010, Coriolant sent the minor back to New Orleans a second time to work as a prostitute. Coriolant again advertised sex with the minor on the online classified advertisement website. R.V. was arrested several days later.