A Victorville man has been convicted on federal charges after posing as a teenage boy online and transporting a 15-year-old girl from San Luis Obispo County to Mexico for illicit sexual activity, according to the Justice Department.
Daniel Navarro, 41, was found guilty on Thursday of multiple counts, including two counts of sexual exploitation of a child for producing sexually explicit images, attempted enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity, transporting a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, distribution of child pornography, and transportation of child pornography.
Navarro was arrested in July 2022 when he re-entered the United States from Mexico. The arrest came ten days after he had taken the victim—a girl from Arizona spending her summer in Nipomo—to Mexico just before her quinceañera. Mexican authorities rescued the girl from a residence in Tijuana following Navarro’s arrest. He remains in federal custody.
Trial evidence showed that Navarro developed an online relationship with the victim through Instagram. Messages between them revealed that Navarro professed his love and discussed plans to have sex with her with the intention of impregnating her.
Investigators determined that Navarro transported the victim across state lines and into Tijuana specifically to engage in illegal sexual acts. He also distributed child pornography to this minor via Instagram and carried such material on his phone during trips between Tijuana and San Luis Obispo County. Evidence further indicated that Navarro used Instagram to persuade another minor to send him sexually explicit images.
United States District Judge André Birotte Jr. set sentencing for October 24. Navarro faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison and could receive up to life imprisonment.
The case was investigated by several agencies: the FBI and San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office led the investigation; assistance came from the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office, FBI Legal Attaché in Mexico City, Mexican law enforcement authorities, and DHS Homeland Security Investigations at the border during Navarro’s arrest.
Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin Reidy (Major Frauds Section) and Kathy Yu are prosecuting the case.
