Convicted Sex Offender Pleads Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and Possession of Child Pornography

Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, Justin Poon pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a child and possession of child pornography. The proceeding was held before United States Magistrate Judge James R. Cho. Poon was a registered sex offender in New York State when he committed the crimes. When sentenced, Poon faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years' imprisonment and up to 70 years' imprisonment, as well as restitution to victims of his crimes.

Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York and James C. Barnacle, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI) announced the guilty plea.

"The defendant is a depraved sextortionist and danger to the community who produced, collected, and distributed child pornography, and terrorized dozens of victims, including minors," stated United States Attorney Nocella. "His conduct reflects a total disregard for the trauma he inflicted on his victims and their families. Although today's guilty plea cannot undo the harm that Poon has caused to his victims, it does ensure that he will be incarcerated for decades."

"Already a convicted child predator, the defendant continued to exploit minors through extortion and production of sexually explicit videos," stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Barnacle. "The FBI/NYPD Crimes Against Children and Human Trafficking Task Force will continue to pursue those who seek to harm our children and ensure they face justice.

According to court proceedings and filings, from at least December 2018 through his arrest in December 2023, Poon engaged in a pattern of exploiting minor girls for the purpose of creating child pornography. Poon targeted his victims and solicited their production of sexually explicit materials for his gratification and financial gain. For example, Poon induced a 16 year-old victim to create sexually explicit images of herself according to his specifications and then sold those images on the internet. Poon also traveled across state lines to engage in sexual activity with another 16 year-old victim and created sexually explicit videos of that victim.

Poon engaged in an extortion scheme during the same period. Poon obtained sexually explicit images and videos of minors and young women using deceptive means, including by pretending to be Snapchat customer support to trick them into sharing their passwords so that he could access private materials in their accounts. Once the defendant had the images and videos, he then threatened to share them directly with his victims' friends and family if they did not comply with his demands for payment or additional sexually explicit materials. When one of his 16-year-old victims pleaded with him not to "ruin [her] life," because she "need[ed] to go to university," the defendant responded: "I don't care."

As part of the government's investigation, search warrants were obtained to search Poon's electronic devices and DropBox accounts. He was found to be in possession of child pornography for at least 50 different victims. Poon was previously convicted in 2021 of sexual misconduct with a 15 year-old victim.

If you believe you may have been a victim of the defendant, please contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation at https://forms.fbi.gov/victims/seeking-victim-information-in-justin-poon-investigation/viewLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link.. This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

The government's case is being handled by the Office's General Crimes Section. Assistant United States Attorney Kamil R. Ammari is in charge of the prosecution.

The Defendant:

JUSTIN POON
Age: 27
West Hempstead, New York

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 23-CR-533 (BMC)