A man from McAllen, Texas, has been sentenced to ten years in federal prison for attempting to coerce and seduce a minor via Instagram. The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, Alamdar S. Hamdani, announced this on Thursday.
Israel Ruiz, 23, pleaded guilty on March 29, according to a press release.
After his prison sentence, Ruiz will serve five years on probation, during which he will be required to comply with conditions restricting his access to children and the Internet, and will be required to register as a sex offender.
Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane sentenced Ruiz. During the sentencing, Crane heard details of Ruiz’s methods of manipulating and blackmailing children to get them to share photos depicting child pornography. During the sentencing, Crane highlighted the danger that child pornography poses to society.
From January to February 2020, Ruiz used Instagram to solicit explicit images from children as young as nine years old, authorities said.
The investigation revealed the tactics Ruiz used to obtain the pornographic material, including contacting minors through Instagram and intimidating victims by threatening to post more nude photos of themselves or their friends online if they did not send him more photos.
Ruiz will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility, which is expected to occur soon.
The FBI investigated the case, which was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cahal P. McColgan and Alexa D. Parcell.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative of the Department of Justice to combat the sexual exploitation and abuse of children, which the department launched in May 2006.
The FBI offers tips to protect children from sextortion.
