Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York | Department of Justice
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, announced on April 6 that Anthony Parente has been charged with coercion and enticement of a minor after allegedly communicating online and over the phone with someone he believed to be a 14-year-old girl. Parente was taken into federal custody on April 2 and presented before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Judith C. McCarthy in White Plains federal court on April 3.
The case highlights ongoing efforts by law enforcement to protect minors from online predators. Authorities say such investigations are crucial for community safety.
“There is little we take more seriously than protecting our children,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “As alleged, Anthony Parente targeted someone he believed to be a teenaged girl for explicit enticement to participate in sexual activity and then traveled into the Southern District of New York with the intention of engaging in sex with a minor. New Yorkers abhor this alleged conduct; it has no place here. Our prosecutors and our FBI partners are committed to identifying and holding accountable those who attempt to prey on our children.”
FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle, Jr., said: “Anthony Parente allegedly engaged in sexually explicit conversations with a purported minor girl and planned to sexually abuse her before authorities arrested him. The FBI continues to partner with state and local law enforcement agencies to hold accountable any sexual predator who targets minors online for perverted gratification.”
According to the complaint, Parente was identified as part of a multi-agency operation beginning March 27, during which he communicated via chat applications, text messages, and phone calls with an undercover officer posing as a minor. He allegedly discussed sexual preferences, requested nude photographs, sent photos of himself, arranged an in-person meeting for sex after six days of communication, drove two hours to meet at an agreed location where he was arrested by New York State Police while carrying bondage equipment, and admitted his intentions during post-arrest questioning.
Parente faces one count of coercion and enticement of a minor—a charge carrying a statutory minimum sentence of ten years in prison up to life imprisonment if convicted; sentencing will ultimately be determined by the judge.
Clayton praised the investigative work conducted by several agencies including the FBI’s Hudson Valley Safe Streets Task Force, multiple units within New York State Police Troops F & G, FBI Albany Field Office, as well as assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York.
Authorities remind members of the public that all charges are allegations at this stage; defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
