The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has indicted a 49-year-old man from New Brunswick after someone allegedly spent more than a year coercing a underage girl to send him sexually explicit photographs and videos.
Joseph B. Haggerty was arrested in Rocky River, Ohio, last month after the DOJ says he flew from his home in New Brunswick to spend the weekend with the minor.
According to a DOJ press release, Haggerty spent between May 14 and July 15, 2017, attempting to coerce a “minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of that conduct.”
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“This defendant preyed upon children,” said United States Attorney Justin E. Herdman.
“This case is another stark reminder to parents that they need to know who their children are communicating with on social media and in real life.”
Homeland Security investigators in Austin, Texas, were originally tipped off that a man was soliciting nude images from children.
Agents in Cleveland then followed the suspect when he arrived in Ohio, where he met an underage female in a local park.
The girl had told relatives she was going on a camping trip for the weekend but actually planned to go to a hotel, according to an affidavit.
Police say they seized clothing, 12 condoms, a stuffed animal and a package of baby pacifiers during their arrest.
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The girl later told agents that she met the 49-year-old on Kik in Deember 2016 before continuing to communicate on Skype.
According to an affidavit, the underage girl said the calls with Haggerty would last hours with the man reportedly directing her to strip naked and engage in sexually explicit conduct.
Agents then contacted the RCMP who searched Haggerty’s home.
Police found nude images of the Ohio minor, contact information for the child in Texas and evidence of five other potential victims.
The DOJ say that their investigation is ongoing.