An Air Force senior airman, David Ibarra, is facing charges of sexual exploitation of a child on Long Island, after allegedly posing as a 13-year-old boy to solicit sexually explicit material from a nine-year-old. Ibarra, 31, was arraigned in federal court at Central Islip and has been ordered to remain in detention pending trial, with allegations that he used payment as an incentive for the minor to send explicit images and videos, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York.
The charges, stemming from a February indictment and subsequent arraignment before U.S. District Court Judge Joanna Seybert, include sexual exploitation of a child, coercion, and enticement; Ibarra was initially arrested in Anchorage, Alaska, and has since been transferred to New York to face the allegations; United States Attorney John J. Durham, together with Leslie Backschies, FBI's Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office, made the announcement regarding the charges. “As alleged, the defendant, a 31-year-old man posing as a 13-year-old boy, manipulated a vulnerable child into producing and sending him sexually explicit images and videos of herself via text message in exchange for money,” Durham stated, underlining the prosecution's commitment to pursuing rigorous sentences for sexual predators targeting children, as noted by the same press release.
Federal investigators tracked down Ibarra through cell phone records that revealed a series of texts requesting sexually explicit images from a minor in Suffolk County, offering payment through Apple Pay for complying with his requests, a statement from the Attorney's Office detailed. Ibarra allegedly made around 17 payments to the child's account.
These proceedings are carried under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide DOJ initiative commenced in May 2006 aimed at tackling the escalating issue of child sexual exploitation and abuse; the Eastern District of New York's Long Island Division's Criminal Section is managing the government's case, in an effort being led by Assistant United States Attorney Paul G. Scotti, while also maintaining Ibarra's presumption of innocence unless proven guilty, if convicted, however, he faces a possible sentence of fifteen to thirty years in prison. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, the public can visit their website to learn about the efforts being made in assisting local, state, and federal forces in identifying and rescuing victimized children.
