By: Najla Alexander
Authorities in NJ reported charges against a Montclair State University (MSU) student who was arrested at his residence on the school’s campus in Essex County for allegedly possessing and creating Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Material (CSAEM) involving minors he contacted online.
Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced the arrest results from an investigation led by the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) Cybercrime Bureau/Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Taskforce.
Officials say Keyon Luff, 21, of Edgewater Park, is charged with first-degree endangering the welfare of a minor for manufacturing CSAEM, second-degree sexual assault, third-degree endangering the welfare of a child for possession of CSAEM, and third-degree impersonation.
Luff, a junior at MSU, was taken into custody after detectives with the DCJ Cybercrime Bureau, assisted by the Montclair State University Police Department (MSUPD), executed a search warrant on Luff’s dorm room shortly before 7 a.m. on May 3.
As a result of the search, detectives seized numerous digital devices from Luff’s room and determined that Luff not only possessed CSAEM but also created fictitious social media accounts to contact underage minors and engage in sexually explicit conversations, officials said.
According to officials, in some conversations, Luff directed children to perform sexual acts, record them, and send them to him via social media platforms. Luff was processed by MSUPD and transported to the Essex County Jail, where he is being held pending a detention hearing.
“I commend the work of the dedicated men and women of the Division of Criminal Justice for their ongoing work on this case and the countless other cases against individuals who use the internet to gain access into the lives of children,” said Attorney General Platkin.
“Through our tireless efforts, we are working to identify and bring to justice those who seek to exploit the most vulnerable members of society – our children.”
The DCJ Cybercrime Bureau initiated the investigation that led to Luff’s arrest following a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) authorities say.
NCMEC is a private, non-profit organization that assists with the location of missing children, the reduction in minor sexual exploitation, and the prevention of child victimization. It is also an international clearinghouse that gathers information from law enforcement agencies and the public regarding missing and exploited minors.
Officials said Cybertips are also reported to NCMEC when an allegation of a minor being exploited over the Internet exists. NCMEC will then disseminate the information to the appropriate agencies for investigation.
Specifically, in this investigation, officials say NCMEC reported that a cloud-based file hosting service reported that several files of suspected CSAEM were uploaded to its platform.
Authorities say through investigative measures, investigators determined that the Internet Protocol (IP) address used to upload the CSAEM files was associated with Montclair State University. Further investigation identified Luff as a suspect.
Deputy Attorney General Robert Guarni is prosecuting the case for the DCJ Cybercrime Bureau under the supervision of Deputy Bureau Chief Lisa Rastelli, Bureau Chief Jillian Carpenter, and Deputy Director Derek Nececkas. The DCJ Cybercrime Bureau led the investigation under the supervision of Lieutenant Richard DaSilva.
Attorney General Platkin thanked the Montclair State University Police Department and its Detective Bureau for their assistance.