46-Year-Old Lured Minors To Produce Sexually Explicit Videos: DOJ

MAHOPAC, NY — An interstate scheme to lure teens into creating sexually explicit content has led back to the Hudson Valley, according to federal officials.

Jay Clayton, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Christopher G. Raia, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the FBI, announced on Friday the unsealing of a complaint charging 46-year-old Brian Liam Fullerton, of Mahopac, with three counts of sexual exploitation of a child. He was arrested Friday morning and presented later that day before U.S. Magistrate Judge Judith C. McCarthy in White Plains federal court.

"As alleged, Brian Fullerton used Snapchat and other social media applications to manipulate and exploit numerous minor victims," Clayton said. "We will deploy every resource at our disposal to protect the most vulnerable among us, and we will prosecute those who prey on our children to the fullest extent of the law."

According to the complaint, starting in September 2022, Fullerton used social messaging applications, including Snapchat, to prey on victims as young as 14 years old. He convinced the victims to send him sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves, investigators said.

Among those Fullerton targeted, according to the feds, was a 14-year-old girl, from whom he obtained several sexually explicit videos, and to whom Fullerton sent sexually explicit text messages, writing, among other things, "I wish you lived in New York, so I can f*** you for real … You want to be bred by a man three times your age you dirty little girl … I scrolled to make sure my face wasn’t in any pics don't need them seeing how old I am ;)."

"Brian Fullerton allegedly directed several female minors to record and perform sexual acts, while requiring secrecy upon learning the victims' underage status," Raia said. "The defendant allegedly engaged in unlawful sexual communications and induced the repeated production of explicit content, violating the victims' privacy and preying upon their innocence. The FBI remains determined to apprehend any individual who sexually exploits minors to fulfill their perverted gratification."

Fullerton was charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of a child, each of which carries a 15-to-30-year sentence.

Clayton praised the work of the FBI and the Warren County Sheriff's Office.

Anyone with information about Fullerton or anyone who may have encountered someone using the Snapchat username "lomax518," the Instagram username "BRADSMITH4187," the Kik username "lomax518," or the TikTok username "bradsddysza," is being asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or through the FBI tips website.

The case is being handled by the Office's White Plains Division, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Carmi Schickler in charge of the prosecution.