BRONX MAN SENTENCED TO A TERM OF UP TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR THE 2001 MURDER OF A 15 YEAR-OLD

Bronx District Attorney Robert T. Johnson announced today that a 42 year-old Bronx man has been arrested and charged with promoting child pornography and other related charges.

Nelson Garcia, of 3770 Bronxwood Avenue, has been charged with 1 count each of Promoting A Sexual Performance By a Child, a class "D" felony offense, Possessing A Sexual Performance By a Child, a class "E" felony offense, Promoting an Obscene Sexual Performance By a Child, a class "D" felony offense, Possessing an Obscene Performance By a Child, a class "E" felony offense, and Attempted Endangering the Welfare of a Child, a class "A" misdemeanor offense. If convicted of the most serious charges of promoting and possessing an obscene sexual performance by a child, Garcia could face maximum terms of up to 7 years imprisonment on each count. The defendant was arraigned today and bail was set at $5,000 cash or bond. Garcia is due back in court on Friday, April 25, 2003 in Part F.

The arrest was the culmination of a series of conversations between the defendant and an undercover New Hampshire Police Detective who met the defendant in an Internet chat room while pretending to be a 14 year-old boy. During the chats Garcia would allegedly send the detective photographs of prepubescent boys engaged in sexual acts. Garcia also sent the detective a photo of himself. Detectives from the New Hampshire Police Department notified the New York City Police Department’s Sexual Exploitation of Children’s Squad, Vice Division, who in turn notified the Bronx District Attorney’s Office in March 2003, at which time our investigation commenced.

It is also alleged that Garcia, sent the detective a 33 minute video tape of prepubescent males engaged in various sexual activities this past February . Garcia was arrested following the execution of a search warrant by detectives from the NYPD’s Sexual Exploitation of Children’s Squad, Vice Enforcement Division.

This arrest is the result of an ongoing initiative of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The Bronx District Attorney’s Office is part of a satellite task force that is funded by a grant from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Pina Terranova of the Arson / Auto / Economic Crimes Division.