In a sobering affirmation of ongoing efforts to safeguard the most vulnerable among us, Jonathan DeLaura, known also as "Jon Dulak," has been sentenced to a staggeringly long prison term for crimes that reflect an unsettling disregard for the innocence of youth. Acting as the guardian of justice in this case, Matthew Podolsky, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, confirmed that DeLaura received a sentence of 485 months in federal lockup. This sentence was handed down today for crimes including the receipt, distribution, and possession of child pornography, alongside transferring obscene material to a minor, according to a statement released by the Department of Justice.
DeLaura, who had previously entered a guilty plea on July 1, 2024, stepped once more into the clutches of the law, already stained by prior convictions, including a 2009 Sexual Misconduct charge. Convicted upon a guilty plea of engaging in oral/anal sexual conduct without consent, DeLaura was sentenced in 2009 to 60 days in prison and six years' probation—obligations that apparently did little to deter him from subsequent offenses. After neglecting the terms set by his probation, in December 2010, he received a sterner one-year sentence, to which he was released in April 2011. Yet, instead of turning a new leaf, DeLaura was caught distributing files containing child exploitative images and videos in May 2011, using a file-sharing program, and by November, he had made contact with a 15-year-old victim claiming to be a 17-year-old girl, eventually resulting in sexual encounters, according to the same press release.
DeLaura's house of cards crumbled on February 2, 2012, as he was arrested while attempting to meet the young boy for the third time. A subsequent search of his residence uncovered a vile collection on an iPod, harboring approximately 162 videos and 5 still photos depicting child pornography, and the sexually explicit photographs he had previously sent to the underage victim. On the following day, justice served him with a conviction for two counts of Criminal Sexual Act in the 3rd degree, resulting in a state prison term which concluded on January 2, 2020, only to continue his confinement facing the current federal charges.
“DeLaura possessed large quantities of child pornography and took advantage of a fifteen-year-old child, all while he was required by law to register as a sex offender. This case underscores the urgent need for law enforcement to continue its efforts to protect children from those who prey on them. As yesterday’s sentencing demonstrates, we will use every tool available to prosecute and punish those who sexually exploit children,” Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky pressed, according to the Department of Justice release.
A joint effort by Homeland Security Investigations, the Putnam County Sheriff's Department, Yorktown Police, and other local law enforcement agencies led to the arrest of DeLaura, who was sentenced to prison and ten years of supervised release.
