New York Man Admits Enticing a Minor to Engage in Criminal Sexual Conduct

NEWARK, N.J. – A Bronx, New York, man today admitted soliciting a female minor to produce sexually explicit images and using Craigslist to advertise sexual encounters with the minor, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced

Gabriel Toro, 31, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of online enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual conduct.

According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:

Toro admitted that between December 2011 and August 2014, he used the internet to induce a 14-year-old girl to engage in criminal sexual conduct including taking pictures of her genitals for him. Toro also admitted to distributing images of the girl to another individual and posting advertisements on Craigslist for individuals to have sex with the minor in exchange for money.

The charge to which Toro pleaded guilty carries a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison, a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 10 years and a maximum fine of $250,000. Toro will be required to register as a sex offender. Sentencing is scheduled for June 25, 2015.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Newark Division, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Kevin Kelly, with the investigation leading to the guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Alfonzo Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.

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Defense counsel: James Friedman Esq., Newark