Source: United States Department of Justice News
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Herndon man made his first court appearance today on charges of production and attempted production of child sexual abuse material.
According to court documents, in and around May 2022, Vincent Joseph Sarikey, 34, allegedly repeatedly engaged in sexually explicit discussions with at least two persons who identified themselves as minors, each of whom he successfully persuaded to produce sexually explicit pictures of themselves and send to him. Sarikey is alleged to have then provided the images of at least one minor to another individual who shared his stated sexual interest in minors. These exchanges took place on several social media platforms, including Telegram, Twitter, and Discord under the monikers “John Lugne,” “@JLugne,” and “triadus#9325.” Charging documents also allege that Sarikey attempted to groom and entice the minors to record themselves engaging in sexually explicit activity and that he sent some of the minors sexually explicit images of himself. Moreover, Sarikey’s electronic devices contained hundreds of images and videos of child sexual abuse material.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation continues to attempt to identify additional victims. Anyone with information regarding these crimes is encouraged to call 1-800-CALLFBI or 1-800-225-5324.
Sarikey faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division, made the announcement after Sarikey appeared in court.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura D. Withers is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc
In 2021, EDVA launched “UnMasked,” a community-based educational outreach and prevention program in Virginia dedicated to raising awareness and educating the community about the prevalence of online sexual exploitation involving children and young adults. UnMasked is a multi-disciplinary partnership of local, state, federal, and non-profit stakeholders. The core curriculum is provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s (NCMEC) NetSmartz program. To report an incident involving online sexual exploitation, call 1-800-843-5678 or submit a report at report.cybertip.org. To request an UnMasked event at your school or organization, please contact EDVA’s Community Outreach Coordinator at USAVAE-UnMasked@usdoj.gov.
This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. The task force is composed of FBI agents, along with other federal agents and detectives from Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia. The task force is charged with investigating and bringing federal charges against individuals engaged in the exploitation of children and those engaged in human trafficking.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:22-cr-48.