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One of them offered money and other prizes through a social media “game” that he created to convince underage girls to send him nude photos, state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said.
Another got victims between 7 and 15 years old to send him sexual photos, then pressured them to send more by threatening to share those he had online, he said.
A third was busted by undercover detectives after he offered $300 to have sexual intercourse with what he thought would be a 14-year-old girl, the attorney general said.
Nearly all of the rest of those arrested trafficked images of underage sex abuse, including child rape videos, Grewal said. Most of them used commonly-found online apps, he said.
“Operation 24/7” was launched to “address the continued spike in reports of potential threats to children from online predators during the COVID pandemic,” the attorney general said.
During the first six months of 2021, he said, the New Jersey Regional Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received 3,324 tips about potential threats to children online – nearly 40% more than received in all in 2019 (2,393).
At this pace, Grewal said, the year-end total would exceed the staggering 6,130 tips received last year.
Seven county prosecutors’ offices, a local police force (Gloucester Township) and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations joined “Operation 24/7,” which was headed by the state Division of Criminal Justice and NJ State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
“Sadly, since the start of the pandemic, predators have used the internet to invade our homes and put our children at risk,” Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II said. “Predators literally have a worldwide web to stalk and prey on children.”
The men arrested in the three-month operation range from 18 to 65 years old, Grewal said.
Many of them “have professions that interact with the public: a medical assistant, a train operator, and restaurant workers,” Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey noted. “It is unsettling.”
Ryan Olson, a 20-year-old student and online retailer from Williamstown, is charged with soliciting underage girls to send him sexually explicit images of themselves. Grewal said he asked them to play a “game” on social media in which he offered prizes and money in exchange for sexually explicit material, “with more explicit photos and videos of the victims earning more points,” he said.
One 15-year-old victim sent Olson a sexually explicit video of herself, to which Olson responded with one of himself, Grewal said, adding that the investigation began with a referral related to a victim in the United Kingdom.
Another defendant, Ndachi Ndungu, a 25-year-old temp from Jersey City, is accused of attempting to extort children he met on the Discord gaming app to send him sexually explicit photos of themselves. Nhungu threatened to share photos he’d already obtained from them on social media or report the victims to Discord, Grewal said -- “until they agreed to send more explicit photos”;
Robert Reinhart, a 52-year-old construction worker from Telford, PA, was arrested in a sting operation in which Grewal said he offered $300 to have intercourse with a 14-year-old girl. Reinhart texted with undercover detectives from the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office who posed as the “girl’s” adult sister, then was arrested after he showed up for what he thought was a tryst in West Deptford, the attorney general said.
Samuel Santiago, a 54-year-old retired corrections officer from Carteret, had child sex abuse images on his cellphone when he was arrested for sexually assaulting an underage girl, Grewal said.
Peter Eskow, 45, a tech manager from Perth Amboy, is charged with having more than 80,000 files of child sexual abuse material on an external hard drive.
Meanwhile, George Oakes, 57, a construction worker from Belvidere, is charged with taking cellphone photos of child sex abuse material on his computer.
Those charged with having and sharing child sex abuse images include two Monmouth County restaurant employees: Luis Torres-Mendieta, 31, of Neptune City, and Carl Aliwalas, 29, of Neptune Township.
Others charged with having and sharing child sex abuse images:
- Johnathan Valencia, 36, a restaurant manager from Wayne;
- Justin Holtz, a 20-year-old farm worker from Southampton;
- Jonathan Dunston, a 53-year-old truck stop employee from Pemberton;
- Eugene Kim, 20, a student from Evesham;
- Joshua Gamboa, 20, an unemployed U.S. Army reservist from Bellmawr;
- Matthew Porch, 19, a student and HVAC technician, and Sean McMichael, 38, employment unknown, both from Cherry Hill;
- Fabian Cervantes, an 18-year-old student and restaurant employee from West Orange;
- Joshua Hunt, 28, of Paulsboro, employment unknown;
- Brian Lusardi, 48, of Glendora, who works at a skating rink;
- Ryan Becker, a 32-year-old warehouse worker from South Amboy (he’s also charged with evidence tampering, Grewal said);
- Derrick J. Anannab, 39, a medical assistant from Holmdel;
- John Coluzzi, a 22-year-old New York City Transit Authority train engineer from Manalapan;
- Adam Cohen, 45, of Oxford, who’s unemployed;
- Garrett Flynn, 22, a retail associate from Washington Borough;
Those charged with possession (and not distribution) include Gordon Strater, a 55-year-old U.S. Postal Service carrier from Blackwood.
Others charged solely with possession:
- Keith Rodenbach, 55, unemployed, of Mays Landing;
- Phong Nguyen, a 44-year-old nail tech, and Hau Tran, 47, unemployed, both from Pennsauken;
- James Camille, 65, of Cherry Hill, employment unknown;
- Edward Robles, 34, of Sewell, employment also unknown;
- Eugenio Dalessandro, 52, of Woolwich, unemployed.
- Franco Grasparil, a 21-year-old student from Sayreville.
Grewal thanked:
- the attorneys, detectives, and staff in the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Cyber Crimes Bureau who participated, as well as the State Police ICAC, TEAMS, K-9, Polygraph and Crime Scene Investigations units;
- U.S. Homeland Security Investigations’ Newark and Cherry Hill offices;
- the prosecutors, detectives, investigators, and staff of the participating prosecutor’s offices from Burlington, Camden, Essex, Gloucester, Middlesex, Monmouth and Warren counties, as well as the Gloucester Police Department.
The Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force has arrested child predators who’ve used a variety of chat apps, Grewal noted.
These, he said, include: Kik, Skout, Grindr, Whisper, Omegle, Tinder, Chat Avenue, Chat Roulette, Wishbone, Live.ly, Musical.ly, Paltalk, Yubo, Hot or Not, Down, and Tumblr.
Arrests also have been made involving the gaming apps Fortnite, Minecraft, and Discord, he added.
Grewal urged parents and guardians to familiarize themselves with these and other apps, to warn their children about the threats that exist online – particularly involving strangers – and to keep an eye out for signs of possible abuse.
“With young people continuing to spend more time on their electronic devices due to the COVID pandemic, we must remain vigilant,” the attorney general said.
“As law enforcement, we would like nothing more than to be there for every innocent child, so every single tip can potentially save a young victim from a predator,” added NJ State Police Supt. Col. Patrick J. Callahan.
“Parents can join the fight by talking to their children about the dangers of online predators and closely monitoring their online activity,” he added.
“There can be no higher priority than protecting our children,” state Division of Criminal Justice Director Lyndsay Ruotolo concluded.
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