NY man charged for exploiting 15-year-old girl in CT

A New York man has been charged with multiple child exploitation offenses after traveling to Connecticut to meet an underage girl. Federal authorities say James Pagliaro, 26, from Middletown, New York, communicated with a 15-year-old girl on TikTok. Pagliaro appeared in court this week and is now in custody. The charges against him include production and receipt of child pornography, enticement of a minor, and traveling to engage in sexual activity with a minor. Each of these charges carries significant prison time if he is found guilty. The complaint states that Pagliaro started messaging the girl in October 2024. By December, she had informed him of her age. In the following months, he made several trips to Connecticut to meet her. A forensic examination of the girl's phone revealed explicit content and thousands of messages exchanged between them. The messages allegedly contained instructions for sexual acts, references to her age, and disturbing language where he called her his "slave." He also reportedly pressured her to recruit other minors to interact with him. The investigation is being conducted by several agencies, including Homeland Security Investigations and local police departments. Parents and guardians can report cases of child exploitation through a dedicated website.