Idaho man sentenced to 25 years for child enticement
POCATELLO, Idaho – An American Falls, Idaho, man was sentenced Wednesday to 25 years in prison followed by 15 years supervised release for enticing and coercing two underage girls, a result of a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
According to the March 2 plea agreement, Jesus Nieto, 20, used social media sites to communicate with the minor girls, ages 11 and 15, for the purpose of soliciting sexually explicit pictures. He also persuaded and coerced the girls into engaging in sexual intercourse with him.
Nieto’s communications with the minors began sometime around November 2015 lasting through January 2016. Evidence introduced at sentencing indicated that Nieto had engaged in unlawful sexual activity with additional underage girls as well.
The case was investigated in cooperation with the American Falls Police Department and Power County Prosecutor’s Office.
“This child predator used a public platform to lure young girls into his traps,” said Brad Bench, special agent in charge of HSI Seattle. “Through joint law enforcement efforts and a strong partnership, we secured a lengthy sentence and removed yet another criminal targeting the innocent youth of our communities.”
This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 16,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2016, more than 2,600 child predators were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 800 victims identified or rescued.
HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196.
Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page. HSI is a founding member of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.
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