Long Island University Student Arrested in Child Porn Case: Feds

A Long Island University student is facing federal charges after he allegedly convinced three underage victims to send him sexually explicit photographs online, then threatened them if they didn't send more, federal prosecutors said.

Robert Garneau, 21, was arrested Wednesday at his dormitory after authorities linked him to three instances where minors sent explicit images over social media networks, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York.

“Robert Garneau’s alleged crimes are the nightmare of every modern parent,” said U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara.

Prosecutors said that Garneau, of Warwick, allegedly used aliases -- including “Raptorr 427,” “Bobby Sixx,” “Allison Denario,” and Giannafitz81 – to convince minors to take and send the explicit photos through social media services including Instagram and Kik. At least one of the victims was 12 years old.

After the children sent him the photos, prosecutors allege that he threatened them if they didn’t send more photos and videos and told them that they would be arrested for what they had already sent. In at least one case, Garneau allegedly threatened to show the explicit images to one of the victim’s Instagram followers.

Garneau was expected to appear in court Thursday afternoon and was charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. If convicted, he faces between 15 and 30 years in federal prison.

NBC 4 New York has reached out to Garneau’s attorney for comment on the case.

Long Island University said in a statement that there was no threat to the campus' community in the case.

"The safety and welfare of all students is always our No. 1 priority," said a university spokeswoman.

Authorities say that there may be more victims in the case and are asking anyone with information to call Homeland Security Investigations’ tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE.

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