ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Gabriel Murillo, 44, of San Bernadino County, California, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with attempted online enticement of a minor. The charge carries a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life, a lifetime period of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Rossi, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, between April 2018 and February 2019, Murillo engaged in sexually explicit online conversations with an individual who he believed was a 12 year old girl living in upstate New York. The defendant attempted to groom the child by sending her pornography, and despite acknowledging her age, requested that she meet with him for sex. On Feb. 16, 2019, Murillo flew from Los Angeles, CA to Rochester, NY, in order to have sex with the child. Unbeknownst to the defendant, the child was actually an undercover New York State Police Investigator.
Murillo was apprehended while disembarking a plane at the Greater Rochester International Airport on Feb. 16, 2019, by members of the New York State Police, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Federal Air Marshal Service.
The defendant made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Marian W. Payson and is being held without bail pending a detention hearing.
The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Eric Laughton; United States Department of Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly; and the Federal Air Marshal Service, under the direction of Supervisory Air Marshal-in-Charge William Hall.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. #
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
