Waterbury Man Poses As Famous Singers; Coerces Minors Into Sexual Conduct: Indictment

A federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging John Eastman, 48, of Waterbury, with one count of coercion and enticement of minors and one count of possession of child pornography.

The indictment alleges that between June and November 2012, Eastman engaged in video chats with minors over the Internet using his computer and online video chatting services such as Skype, according to a prepared statement from Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

“During these video chats, Eastman enticed the minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct, which Eastman recorded and/or photographed and then saved on his computer. In order to deceive and entice the minors, Eastman posed as famous singers and musicians that are popular to teenagers,” Daly said.

The indictment further alleges that Eastman viewed and downloaded over the Internet other images and videos of child pornography. He has been in state custody since May 2013, when he was arrested on related state charges.

If convicted of coercion and enticement of minors, Eastman faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life.

If convicted of possession of child pornography, he faces a mandatory term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.

Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Waterbury Police Department.

Photo by Andrew_Writer, via flickr creative commons