A federal grand jury has indicted a Brooklyn man on child pornography charges after investigators found a missing minor with him in Niagara Falls, federal prosecutors said.
Alexey Moskalyuk, 27, faces charges of producing and distributing child pornography following an investigation that began with a missing-person report on Aug. 3.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York said investigators examined electronic devices provided by the minor's parent and found social media communications between the minor and Moskalyuk.
Authorities located the minor the following day in Niagara Falls with Moskalyuk, who prosecutors said had traveled from Brooklyn.
According to the indictment and an earlier criminal complaint, investigators recovered sexually explicit communications and recordings involving Moskalyuk and the minor. Prosecutors also said evidence linked Moskalyuk to an online group that facilitated harmful interactions between adults and minors.
The charges carry a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum of 30 years, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. An indictment is a formal accusation, and the case has not been resolved.
The FBI's Buffalo office and Albion Police Department investigated the case, with assistance from the Orleans County Sheriff's Office and the FBI's Honolulu office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sasha Mascarenhas is prosecuting the case.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to news@fingerlakes1.com.