Stanislaus County Man Pleads Guilty to Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Gonzalo Hernandez, 38, of Oakdale, pleaded guilty today to one count of sexual exploitation of a minor, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

According to court documents, between Aug. 2, 2021, and Nov. 13, 2023, Hernandez produced sexually explicit surreptitious video recordings of a minor on at least 10 occasions and later distributed some of these images via social media. Hernandez knew the victim was under the age of 18. In March 2024, Hernandez, posing as 15-year-old-boy, used social media to persuade a second minor to produce at least one image of that minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct and to send the sexually explicit image to Hernandez.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Oakdale Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shelley D. Weger is prosecuting the case.

Hernandez is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Aug. 17, 2026. Hernandez faces a mandatory minimum statutory penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison on each count, and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case was brought as 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 the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.usdoj.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.. Click on the "resources" tab for information about internet-safety education.