Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced that a sex offender with a prior conviction for sexual assault on a minor was sentenced to prison today for using chat apps, while on parole, to manipulate an underage girl in Wisconsin into sending him sexually explicit images of herself.
Craig Blickman, 30, of Marlton, was sentenced to nine years in state prison, including more than 7 ½ years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Terrence R. Cook in Burlington County.
He pleaded guilty on February 14, to a first-degree charge of manufacturing sexual abuse material of minors. On July 17, he entered a superseding guilty plea to first-degree manufacturing sexual abuse material of minors and third-degree impairing/debauching the morals of a minor.
Blickman will be required to register under Megan’s Law and will be subject to parole supervision for life.
Blickman was charged in an investigation led by officers of the New Jersey State Parole Board, who initially arrested Blickman for a violation of parole.
According to officials In 2012, Blickman pleaded guilty to sexual assault of a minor and impairing or debauching the morals of a minor for sexually assaulting a girl between the ages of 13 and 15.
He was sentenced on January 25, 2013, to five years in prison. He was released from prison and placed on parole status in December 2015.
During a routine parole visit to Blickman’s residence in November 2018, his parole officer discovered that Blickman had violated his parole conditions by communicating with a minor.
As a result, the parole officer seized Blickman’s cell phone. A forensic examination of the cell phone revealed that, over an extended period of time in 2017, Blickman used chat apps to engage in sexually explicit conversations with a 15-year-old girl in Wisconsin.
During these conversations, Blickman repeatedly pressured the girl into sending him sexually explicit images of herself. Police officers in Wisconsin assisted in the investigation. The specific police department is not being named to protect the victim.
“While on parole for sexually assaulting a minor, Blickman resumed his predatory behavior, stalking a vulnerable victim on social media and manipulating her into sending him sexually explicit images of herself,” Attorney General Grewal said. “I commend the State Parole Board for diligently monitoring this convicted sex offender and exposing his new crime.”
“This case serves as a stark reminder of the dangers children face from online predators, who use social media, chat apps, and gaming platforms to find victims they can sexually exploit,” Director Veronica Allende of the Division of Criminal Justice said. “We urge parents to talk to their children about this threat and alert law enforcement about any suspicious persons targeting children on the internet.”
Attorney General Grewal and Director Allende urged anyone with information about the distribution of child sexual abuse materials on the internet – or about suspected improper contact by unknown persons communicating with children via the internet or possible exploitation or sexual abuse of children – to contact the New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Tipline at 888-648-6007.