Vernon Man Enters Plea In Fed Child Exploitation Investigation

VERNON, CT — A Vernon man had admitted to paid, lewd image exchanges with children on a social media platform, a federal prosecutor said.

Marc H. Silverman, acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that Daryl Todd, 44, of Vernon, entered a guilty plea Tuesday in Hartford federal court to a child exploitation offense.

According to court documents and statements made in court, an investigation by the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force revealed that Todd used Snapchat to communicate with minor girls and entice them to send him sexually explicit images and videos of themselves, sometimes in return for money that Todd sent the victims using the mobile payment service Cash App.

Todd also sent sexually explicit images of himself to the minor victims, Silverman said.

After Todd was arrested on March 7, 2024, analysis of his cellphone revealed sexually explicit images of minor females, according top case records.

Todd pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography, an offense that carries a mandatory minimum prison term of five years and a maximum term of 20 years. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 1.

Todd is released on a $100,000 bond pending sentencing.

This matter has been investigated by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy V. Gifford through the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.