STAMFORD, CT — A 21-year-old Ecuadorian national has been charged with federal child exploitation offenses after allegedly fleeing Connecticut with a 14-year-old girl.
Jose Israel Tenesaca Mejia, of West Haven, was charged by federal criminal complaint on Dec. 5 with sexual exploitation of children and possession of child pornography.
The Stamford Police Department secured an arrest warrant on April 29 charging Tenesaca Mejia with felony risk of injury and interfering with an officer.
Tenesaca Mejia subsequently fled Connecticut with the minor victim, according to court documents.
On Oct. 28, the FBI in New Haven contacted the FBI in Minneapolis and relayed information about Tenesaca Mejia’s active arrest warrant and that his iPhone had been tracked to a specific location in Minneapolis.
Investigators surveilled the area, identified both Tenesaca Mejia and the minor victim, and arrested Tenesaca Mejia.
Preliminary analysis of Tenesaca Mejia’s iPhone revealed videos and images of him engaged in sexual conduct with the minor victim, according to court documents.
Investigators also identified numerous images and videos of suspected child pornography that Tenesaca Mejia had downloaded using the Telegram app.
The sexual exploitation charge carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years.
The possession of child pornography charge carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
Tenesaca Mejia has been detained since his arrest and appeared Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson in Hartford.
