LI Pastor Accused Of Sexual Exploitation Of Children: Feds

BRENTWOOD, NY — A Long Island pastor was arraigned Wednesday after he was accused of sexually exploiting children and distributing child porn, federal officials said.

According to the United States Attorney's Office, Eastern District of New York, Jose Saez, Jr., 28, of Brentwood, a pastor at a Brentwood church, was arraigned at the federal courthouse in Central Islip before United States Magistrate Judge James M. Wicks on an indictment charging him with sexual exploitation of children, coercion and enticement of children, distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.

Saez was arrested on a complaint on September 28 and has been detained pending trial, federal officials said.

Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York field office, announced the indictment.

"As alleged, despite the trust and respect placed in him by his community and his congregation, the defendant verbally abused children online and attempted to persuade minors to produce sexually explicit photographs and videos of themselves and send them to him via the internet," Peace said. "Protecting children from predators and those who sexually exploit them will always be a priority of this office."

Peace thanked the Suffolk County Police Department for their assistance
with the case.

As set forth in court filings, while employed as a pastor at the church, Saez reportedly used an encrypted messaging service to engage in sexually explicit conversations with minors and with a law enforcement officer acting in an undercover capacity.

In August, Saez had online conversations with the law enforcement officer, federal officials said. During those conversations, he stated that he had sexually abused an infant, that his "sweet spot" for molesting children was children between the ages of 11 and 15, and that he was able to find his younger victims at "church," prosecutors said.

Pursuant to a court-authorized search, FBI agents recovered numerous images and videos of child pornography from Saez, federal officials said.

If convicted, Saez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and up to 30 years in prison, Saez said.

This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, federal officials said.

"When you go to church, you expect to be safe and protected, but that's not what members of Pastor Jose Saez's congregation got. He allegedly possessed child pornography and sexually abused multiple children. This is unfathomable to the families and caused lasting harm to the children. The men and women of the FBI's Long Island Child Exploitation Task Force work tirelessly to protect our children, but bad people are still out there. If anyone has any information on Saez or think they know someone who may be a victim, please call law enforcement," FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Smith said.

An attorney for Saez. could not immediately be reached for comment.

Anyone with information about sexual exploitation by Saez is asked to contact the FBI at tips.fbi.gov or 212-384-1000.