Man Accused of Child Exploitation in Putnam

A Connecticut man who is accused of conducting sexual assault of a minor in Putnam County has been charged by federal criminal complaint with multiple child exploitation offenses.

According to court documents, on April 3, 2024, Marcos Francisco Javier Gomez, 23, of Norwalk, was arrested by the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office after he traveled to New York to meet with a 13-year-old girl with whom he had engaged in sexually explicit communications via text messages, FaceTime, and various social media applications. 

Subsequent court-authorized searches of Gomez’s cellphone allegedly revealed evidence that he had been communicating with at least five minor females in Connecticut, had recorded himself engaging in sexual activity with four of those minors, requested they send him videos depicting themselves engaging in sexually explicit conduct, and sent obscene images of himself to at least one of the minors. 

Gomez typically met his minor victims through Snapchat, according to David Sullivan, U.S. attorney for the District of Connecticut.

The complaint charges Gomez with production of child pornography, receipt or attempted receipt of child pornography, possession or attempted possession of child pornography, and transfer of obscene materials to a minor. He faces 15 years to life in prison.

Gomez, who has been serving a New York State prison sentence related to his conduct with the 13-year-old minor victim, appeared last week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Richardson in Hartford and was ordered detained.

This investigation is being conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, the Putnam County Sherrif’s Office, and the Norwalk, Bridgeport, Watertown, and Waterbury police departments.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation. For more information, visit www.justice.gov/psc.

To report cases of child exploitation, visit www.cybertipline.com.