Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today the arrest of BRIAN REED. REED is charged with communicating online with an individual he believed to be a 13-year-old girl and attempting to meet the girl to engage in sexual activities and with engaging in that offense while a registered sex offender. REED was presented today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew E. Krause in White Plains federal court and detained.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “This case underlines the urgent need for law enforcement to continue its efforts to protect children from those who prey on them. As this arrest shows, we will use every tool available to law enforcement to investigate and prosecute those who sexually exploit children.”
According to the allegations in the Complaint[1] filed on May 31, 2022 in White Plains federal court:
On May 25, 2022 and May 26, 2022, an investigator with the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office (“Investigator-1”), who was posing as a 13-year-old girl on various online social media platforms, communicated via text with BRIAN REED. REED asked Investigator-1 for sexually explicit photos and indicated that he wanted to meet with her for the purpose of having sex.
During the communications with REED, Investigator-1 referred on multiple occasions to the fact that she was 13 years old and also told REED that “im a virgin still.” REED responded, “Thats ok.” REED told Investigator-1 that he wanted to speak by phone and Investigator-1 spoke to REED by phone on a number of occasions. During their calls, REED and Investigator-1 discussed meeting in person and REED described in detail various sexual activities that he wanted to engage in with Investigator-1. REED said he was excited to meet her and that he could “teach [her] some things.” REED made a plan to meet Investigator-1 at a park in Rockland County, New York.
On May 26, 2022, at approximately 11:35 p.m., REED arrived at a parking lot near the agreed-upon meeting spot and parked his car. As he began to walk toward Investigator-1, who was waiting at the meeting spot, REED was arrested. Following his arrest, REED was interviewed and he admitted, among other things, that he communicated with an individual he believed was 13 years old and made a plan to meet her so that he could have sex with her. In addition, REED stated that he had been convicted of a sex offense and was a registered sex offender. On May 27, 2022, BRIAN REED, the defendant, was charged in Clarkstown Justice Court with Attempted Rape in the 2nd Degree and Disseminating Indecent material to minors.
On October 17, 2016, REED was convicted in Morris County Superior Court, New Jersey, of Endangering the Welfare of a Child Through Sexual Conduct and sentenced to three years in prison. REED was required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.
There may be other victims of this alleged conduct. If you have information to report, contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-800-CALL-FBI
* * *
REED, 33 of Sussex, New Jersey is charged with one count of attempted enticement of a minor, which carries a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison, and one count of committing the offense of attempted enticement while a registered sex offender, which carries a minimum sentence of 10 years to be imposed consecutively to any sentence of imprisonment imposed for the attempted enticement.
The statutory minimum and maximum penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.
Following today’s presentment, Judge Krause ordered that BRIAN REED be detained.
Mr. Williams praised the efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office, Rockland County District Attorney’s Office Special Investigations Unit, Rockland County District Attorney’s Office Special Victims Unit, Town of Clarkstown Police Department, and the Westchester County Safe Streets Task Force, which is comprised of special agents and task force officers from the FBI, U.S. Probation, New York State Police, New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, Westchester County DAs Office, Rockland County DAs Office, NYPD, Westchester County PD, and the Yonkers, New Rochelle, Mount Vernon, Greenburgh, White Plains, Peekskill, Ramapo, and Clarkstown Police Departments. He added that the investigation is ongoing.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Marcia S. Cohen is in charge of the prosecution.
[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the description of the Complaint set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.