Air Force Officer Indicted for Child Exploitation Offenses

TRENTON, N.J. - A Burlington County, New Jersey, man was indicted yesterday for various child exploitation offenses, U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer announced.

Gabriel Perez, 31, of Eastampton, New Jersey, was charged in a two-count Superseding Indictment with attempted enticement and coercion of a minor, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2422(b) (Count One), and attempted transfer of obscene materials to a minor, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1470 (Count Two).

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

Beginning in mid-August 2024, Perez, who was then 29 years old and an officer in the United States Air Force, communicated over Reddit with an undercover law enforcement officer who purported to be a 14-year-old girl. Over the course of two weeks, Perez expressed his interest in meeting with the purported minor for sex. On August 28, 2024, Perez sent an obscene photograph of himself to the purported minor and arranged to meet her the next day to engage in unlawful sexual activity. On August 29, 2024, Perez drove to the pre-arranged meeting location and was arrested by law enforcement with condoms in his pocket.

If convicted, Perez faces a mandatory minimum prison sentence of ten years' imprisonment and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment on Count One of the Superseding Indictment and a maximum prison sentence of ten years' imprisonment on Count Two of the Superseding Indictment. Each of the offenses carry a maximum fine of $250,000.

U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer credited law enforcement members with the Air Force Office of Special Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Bates, with the investigation leading to the charges. He also thanked the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office and the Eastampton Police Department for their assistance with the investigation.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matt Belgiovine and Richard Shephard of the Criminal Division in Trenton.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) in the Justice Department's Criminal Division, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/pscLinks 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..

The charges and allegations contained in the Superseding Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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Defense counsel: Ray Mateo, Esq. and Emily Arezzi, Esq.