John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOSE MANUEL SANTOS, 37, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer in New Haven to enticing a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Santos was employed as a bus/van driver in Connecticut with responsibilities that included transporting children going to and from a middle school in Wallingford.  In October 2018, law enforcement received information that Santos was sexually soliciting a 13-year-old girl who was a passenger on his route.  Analysis of the minor victim’s cell phone revealed more than 200 text messages or calls between Santos and the victim, a sexually explicit photo of Santos that Santos sent to the minor victim, and multiple messages in which Santos coerced the victim to send him a sexually explicit photo of her.

Santos has been detained since his arrest on November 2, 2018.  After his arrest, Santos communicated with others in an attempt to prevent the minor victim from testifying against him.

Judge Meyer scheduled sentencing for May 21, 2020, at which time Santos faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of life imprisonment.

This matter is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Connecticut Department of Correction.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nancy V. Gifford and Brian P. Leaming.

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 about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

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

John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Peter C. Fitzhugh, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston, announced that JOSE MANUEL SANTOS, 36, of Bridgeport, was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint charging him with transfer of obscene materials to a minor, and enticement of a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity.

As alleged in the complaint, earlier this week, law enforcement received information that Santos, a school bus/van driver, was sexually soliciting a 13-year-old girl who was a passenger on his route.  The mother of the minor victim provided the victim’s cell phone to investigators.  Preliminary analysis of the cell phone revealed a sexually explicit photo of Santos that Santos sent to the minor victim, and text messages from Santos, including a text message asking the minor victim to send him a sexually explicit photo of her.

Santos appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert M. Spector in New Haven and is detained.

The charge of transfer of obscene materials to a minor carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.  Enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years.

U.S. Attorney Durham stressed that a criminal complaint is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy V. Gifford.