Columbia Woman Gets Hefty Sentence In Federal Sex Assault Case Involving Minor

COLUMBIA, CT — A Columbia woman who was accused of convincing a juvenile boy to engage in sexual activity has been sentenced to 20 Years in a federal prison.

David X. Sullivan, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that Alyson Cranick, 44, of Columbia, was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to 240 months in prison and 10 years of supervised release for "coercing a minor boy to engage in sexual activity."

According to court documents and statements made in court, Cranick, initially using text messaging and Snapchat, and then using the internet chat service Discord, "coerced" an 11-year-old boy to engage in sexually explicit conduct with her.

Several times during the summer and into the fall of 2022, Cranick induced the minor victim to leave his house after midnight to meet up with her, according to case records. Cranick "sexually assaulted the minor victim during these meetings," Sullivan said.

Between July and October 2022, Cranick exchanged more than 4,700 messages with the boy on Discord, according to case records.

Cranick was arrested on related state charges on Nov. 14, 2023, and has been detained since Nov. 28, 2023. She was federally charged in July 2024. On Nov. 18, 2025, she pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity.

The matter was investigated by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force and the Connecticut State Police’s Eastern District Major Crime Unit. The FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force includes federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.