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Michael Ferro, age 36, formerly of Avon in Hartford County, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, March 1 in district court in New Haven to one count of distribution of child pornography following his arrest last year.
Prosecutors said that on Aug. 18, 2021, Ferro used the Kik social media app to begin chatting in a group with an undercover FBI agent who posed as the father of a 12-year-old girl.
When Ferro determined that the officer was purportedly engaging in sexual activity with his “daughter,” he sent a photo depicting the genitals of a child to him.
Ferro then stated that he had more pictures to share, and expressed an interest in meeting the agent's daughter to engage in sexual activities, officials said.
After confirming Ferro’s identity, investigators traveled to Ferro’s Avon residence late in the evening of Aug. 18, informed him of the investigation, and seized his cell phone.
He was arrested on Sept. 29, 2021. He had faced life in prison on the initial charges before pleading down.
Ferro is scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday, May 24, when he will face a mandatory minimum term of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison. He had been released on bond but was remanded into custody following his court appearance on March 1.
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