A Manalapan man who was previously employed by a family amusement center in Freehold was arrested today for allegedly convincing children to engage in sexually explicit conduct online, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Officials said Angelo Curato, 26, was charged by complaint with one count of producing visual depictions of a child engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Curato is expected to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leda Dunn Wettre in Newark federal court.
According to the complaint:
Curato used online applications, including Skype, to interact with dozens of boys while pretending to be a 17-year-old girl. During these online communications, Curato received naked pictures of the children and watched them engage in sexually explicit conduct on video.
Officials said on June 2, 2017, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Curato’s residence. A forensic review of Curato’s laptop revealed hundreds of sexually explicit chat messages on his Skype accounts and hundreds of screenshots of boys engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
The charge of producing Explicit Images of Minors carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine.
Anyone with information regarding possible victims of this activity is urged to contact 866-DHS-2-ICE.
The charge and allegations in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.