WHITE PLAINS, NY – Michael Meyers, an occupational therapist, was arrested on charges of sexual exploitation of a child and receipt and distribution of child pornography, announced Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and James Smith, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s New York Field Office. Meyers was presented today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Judith C. McCarthy in White Plains federal court.
U.S. Attorney Williams highlighted the severity of Meyers’s alleged crimes, especially concerning his role in child care. Williams affirmed the office’s commitment to protecting children and prosecuting those who exploit them.
FBI Assistant Director Smith revealed that Meyers used an online communication app to receive explicit images from a minor. The fact that Meyers worked in a school adds to the gravity of his alleged crimes. Smith emphasized the FBI’s dedication to safeguarding vulnerable community members and prosecuting sexual predators.
According to the complaint unsealed in White Plains federal court, an investigation of Meyers’s phone revealed communications with a 16-year-old minor on Discord, where he received explicit photos from the minor upon his request. Records show that Meyers had been employed as an occupational therapist at a school in Oceanside, New York, since September 1998.
Meyers, 62, from Port Jervis, New York, faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison for the sexual exploitation charge. The receipt and distribution of child pornography charge carry a minimum of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison. Sentencing will be determined by the judge, based on congressional guidelines.
Williams commended the collaborative efforts of the FBI’s Hudson Valley Resident Agency’s Safe Streets Task Force, local and state law enforcement agencies, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. He noted that the investigation is ongoing.