By: Najla Alexander
Authorities in Monmouth County announced that a Passaic County man has been criminally charged with offenses of Explicit Materials Involving Minors (CSAM).
Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago said Joseph S. Velazquez, 25, of Passaic, is charged with second-degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child (Distribution of Explicit Materials Involving Minors) and third-degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child (Possession of Explicit Materials Involving Minors).
Officials stated that an investigation into this matter was initiated in February 2024 by a Prosecutor’s Office Detective acting undercover on a chat group on the social media network Kik.
While monitoring the chat group, officials said, the Detective was contacted by another user, going by the alias “blazeitupp1” and later identified as Velazquez, who electronically sent files containing CSAM and also repeatedly expressed interest in having a sexual encounter with a fictitious child.
Last week, officials say, members of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office, and Passaic County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Velazquez’s home in Passaic and located the CSAM leading to the charges against him.
Velazquez was arrested without incident and transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution (MCCI) pending a detention hearing, tentatively scheduled for Monday, June 24, in Monmouth County Superior Court, authorities say.