Stamford Man Indicted On Child Exploitation Offenses: Officials

STAMFORD, CT — A Stamford man was charged by indictment this week with several child exploitation offenses, according to an announcement from the office of U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut David X. Sullivan.

On Oct. 15, a federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging Rick Marro, 44, with production of child pornography, an offense that carries a mandatory minimum term of 15 years in prison and a maximum of 30 years; receipt and distribution of child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum prison term of five years and a maximum of 20 years; and possession of child pornography, an offense that carries a maximum prison term of 10 years.

Marro was originally arrested on a federal criminal complaint on Jan. 18, 2024.

As alleged in the indictment and other court documents, law enforcement began investigating Marro in August 2023 after a 16-year-old boy reported that he had been sexually exploited by Marro, officials said in an announcement.

The victim reported that he met Marro on a dating application, and they began communicating on Snapchat in April 2023. The victim indicated that they met in person at Marro’s house on multiple occasions, and two of the encounters were sexual in nature, officials said.

"The victim reported that Marro gave him 'poppers,' that Marro was 'into' asphyxiation, and, on one occasion, Marro strangled him and he passed out 'for a minute or two,'" officials said. "A law enforcement review of the victim’s Snapchat account showed that Marro sent him videos that Marro had recorded of them engaged in sexual activity. He also sent the victim a video depicting Marro choking him."

The Food & Drug Administration notes "poppers" are products that contain certain chemicals that, when breathed in, cause a high effect.

Law enforcement seized Marro's phone, and located the same videos that he recorded and sent the boy showing them engaged in sexual activity, officials said.

"Investigators also located text messages that Marro had sent to another individual in which Marro stated that he 'choked [the victim] all the way to unconscious today by accident,'" officials added.

Marro was arraigned on Nov. 6, and pleaded not guilty. He has been detained since his arrest. A trial is scheduled for August 2026.