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The conviction of Fairfield County resident Francisco Gomez of Norwalk for attempted rape was announced on Wednesday, Aug. 28 by Putnam County District Attorney Robert Tendy.
According to Tendy's office, Gomez used social media to entice a 13-year-old child from Putnam County to engage in sexual activity with him. These messages were later found by the child's mother and shown to authorities, who came up with a plan to apprehend him.
This plan was executed on Wednesday, April 3, 2024, when Gomez drove to Putnam believing he was about to engage in sex with the child. Instead, he was surrounded by members of law enforcement and taken into custody, officials said.
Gomez was convicted of second-degree attempted rape and first-degree disseminating indecent material to a minor. He will be sentenced on Monday, Nov. 11 to three years in state prison followed by five years of supervised release.
He will also be required to register as a sex offender.
Special Victims Chief Prosecutor Chana Krauss, who prosecuted Gomez's case, urged parents to monitor their children's activity on social media just in case they run into similar predators online:
"There are predators lurking online, grooming young children in an attempt to engage in sexual activity with them or to threaten them into sending sexually explicit videos," Krauss said, adding, "It’s better to have your son or daughter mad at you for being overprotective than risking the dangers sexual predators pose to your kids.”
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