An East New York police officer allegedly coerced minors into sending him sexually explicit photos and videos, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday.
Carmine Simpson, a cop assigned to the 75th Precinct in East New York, was arrested at his Long Island home on Jan. 28 and charged with the exploitation of children.
The 26-year-old defendant asked children between the ages of 13 and 17 to send him exploitative photos and videos of themselves on Twitter, Snapchat, and the social media app Discord, prosecutors claimed. Simpson would allegedly tell his victims to take photos or videos of themselves masturbating and write on themselves with marker, and would instruct the children to send more sexually-exploitative images after receiving the material, prosecutors said.
The Brooklyn cop allegedly told his victims that he was 17 and sent them a photo of himself using a filter that made him look younger, the complaint said. Simpson reportedly communicated with at least 46 minors, and received at least 18 sexually exploitative photos and 33 videos on Twitter alone.
Simpson has been employed by the New York Police Department since October 2018. He was reportedly suspended without pay on Thursday morning from the 75th Precinct, the city’s most-sued precinct that patrols East New York and Brownsville.
If convicted, Simpson would face a minimum of 15 years in prison.
One prosecutor blasted Simpson for his exploitation of children.
“As a law enforcement officer, Mr. Simpson swore an oath to protect the public he served. We allege he chose instead to manipulate some of our society’s most vulnerable citizens when he repeatedly enticed children to create sexually explicit videos and photos,” said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney. “If you believe someone is trying to entice or sexually exploit your child, please report it to us by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or going to tips.fbi.gov.”
