Columbia Student Set Up Sexual Encounters With Children, Feds Say

MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS, NY — A Manhattan man who co-founded groups that advocated on behalf of the victims of sexual violence is facing federal child pornography charges.

Joel Davis, 22, was arrested Tuesday and charged with enticement of a minor under the age of 18 to engage in sexual activity, attempted sexual exploitation of a minor, possession of child pornography and receipt and distribution of child pornography, the U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of New York announced.

Davis was a general studies student at Columbia University and helped co-found the advocacy group Youth to End Sexual Violence, the Columbia Spectator reported. Davis is also involved with the group International Campaign to Stop Rape and Gender Violence in Conflict and was an advocate for sexual assault prevention on Columbia's campus, according to the report.

Davis exchanged text messages with undercover law enforcement agents in which he said he was sexually interested in children of all ages, federal prosecutors said. Davis sent sexually explicit photographs of infants and toddlers to the undercover agents and detailed sexual activities that he wanted to partake in with the undercover agent's nine-year-old and two-month-old daughters, federal prosecutors said.

During conversations with undercover agents, Davis claimed to have sexual experience with a nine-month-old boy, six-month-old girl and seven-year-old boy, according to a federal complaint.

"Joel Davis started an organization devoted to stopping sexual violence, while allegedly engaged in the duplicitous behavior of sharing explicit images of infants engaged in sexual activity," U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said in a statement. "Davis also allegedly solicited an undercover officer – whom he thought to be a willing participant – to send sexually explicit videos of his nine-year-old daughter, and even to set up a sexual encounter between himself and a two-year-old."

During a search of Davis' apartment officers found images and videos containing child pornography on the man's cellphone, according to a federal complaint. Davis later admitted to speaking with undercover agents about setting up sexual encounters and told officers that he recently had a sexual experience with a 13-year-old boy he met through the dating app Grindr, according to the complaint.

If convicted on all charges, Davis could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

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