United States of America v. Samuel Gonzalez

New York, New York criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with Distribution And Possession Of Child Pornography

Former Teacher In New York City Charged With Distribution And Possession Of Child Pornography

Jay Clayton, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and Christopher G. Raia, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI”) announced today the arrest of SAMUEL GONZALEZ, a former teacher at an acting school in New York City. GONZALEZ is charged with distributing and possessing child pornography, including videos depicting the sexual abuse of infants and toddlers. GONZALEZ will be presented later today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Moses.



U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said: "As alleged, Samuel Gonzalez distributed a large volume of child pornography, including images of sexual abuse of children as young as a few months old. The lasting scars from the horrific abuse of children are deeply troubling to all New Yorkers. Together with our partners, we will relentlessly pursue those who victimize children and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”



FBI Assistant Director in Charge Christopher G. Raia said: "Samuel Gonzalez allegedly distributed thousands of pornographic images of infants and minors to an undercover federal agent over a brief period. Gonzalez's alleged actions grossly disregarded the victims' welfare and repeatedly violated their privacy by sharing this twisted material. The FBI is deeply committed to preventing crimes against children and will continue to apprehend any individual who supplies these explicit images.”



According to the allegations contained in the Complaint:[1]



GONZALEZ is an actor, dancer, theater producer, and former teacher at an acting school in New York City. In or about January 2023 and April 2023, GONZALEZ used an online messaging application to send links containing over 1,500 files of child pornography to a federal law enforcement agent acting in an undercover capacity. In addition, in or about June 2023, federal agents executed a judicially-authorized search warrant of GONZALEZ's apartment. Pursuant to that warrant, federal agents seized and searched GONZALEZ's phone and laptop, which were found to contain over 80 unique files of child pornography, including videos and images of infants and prepubescent adolescents who had not attained 12 years of age.