NJ man pleads guilty to production of child pornography

NEWARK, N.J. – A New Jersey man pleaded guilty Tuesday to producing child pornography. The guilty plea resulted from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

From July 2011 to Jan. 28, Fredy Arbito, 31, of Hightstown, knowingly coerced an 11-year-old girl to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of transmitting it live over the Internet.

The production of child pornography charge to which Arbito pleaded guilty is punishable by up to 30 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Arbito’s sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 4, 2014.

This investigation was part of Operation Predator, a nationwide HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders and child sex traffickers. HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-347-3023 or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators.

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 (1-800-843-5678) or its online resource for reporting child sexual exploitation.

HSI is a founding member and current chair 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.