Registered Fall River offender pleads guilty in connection with receiving and possessing child abuse material

BOSTON – A registered sex offender pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material via multiple groups on a messaging app.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, 51-year-old Angel Figueroa of Fall River, pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled sentencing for Jan. 26, 2024. In December 2021, Figueroa was arrested and has been in federal custody since that time.

Figueroa was identified as an active member of at least four messaging applications where CSAM was being disseminated. A forensic examination of Figueroa’s cell phone revealed approximately 523 images and 72 videos of CSAM depicting children as young as infants. At least one image depicted bondage of a child under two years old. During an interview with law enforcement, Figueroa admitted that he downloaded, saved and viewed CSAM using apps on his cell phone and had been doing so for one or two years. Figueroa is a registered sex offender based upon a 2013 Massachusetts state court conviction for indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 years old.

The charge of receipt of child pornography after a prior conviction provides a sentence of at least 15 years and up to 40 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of possession of child pornography after a prior conviction provides for a sentence of at least 10 years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations, in New England; and Fall River Chief of Police Paul Gauvin made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica Soto, Meghan C. Cleary, and J. Mackenzie Duane of the Major Crimes Unit are prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims.