Latest news with #JacobHenriques
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Yahoo
Five Mass. men arrested in national round-up of over 200 child sex predators
Five Massachusetts men were arrested and charged last week as part of a nationwide round-up of child sex predators, the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney's Office announced Wednesday. Between April 28 and May 2, more than 200 suspects were arrested across the country sd part of Operation Restore Justice — a coordinated effort by law enforcement to identify, track and arrest child sex predators, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a press release. The operation involved all 55 FBI field offices. 'Operation Restore Justice delivered a powerful and urgent message: protecting children is not just a worthy cause we recognize, it is a mission we carry out every day. We will not relent in our pursuit of those who exploit children,' Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said in the release. School leaders, registered sex offenders and law enforcement officers were among those arrested in last week's round-up, the U.S. Attorney's office said. They are accused of various crimes, including the production, distribution and possession of child sexual abuse material, online enticement and transportation of minors and child sex trafficking. Massachusetts men arrested in the operation: Boston resident and former Emmanuel College Assistant Director of Admissions Jacob Henriques, 29, is charged with attempted sex trafficking of a minor. He is accused of soliciting an underage college applicant to engage in commercial sex with him. Level 1 sex offender and Holyoke resident Justin Ouimette, 34, is charged with possession of child sexual abuse material. He is accused of having over 400 digital files depicting child sexual abuse, including the abuse of victims as young as three years old. Agawam resident Warren Messeck, 75, is also charged with possession of child sexual abuse material. He is accused of being part of an online child sexual abuse material sharing network and having over 10,000 files depicting such abuse on six of his electronic devices. Wareham resident Brandon Bendall, 49, is charged with possessing and receiving child sexual abuse material. He is accused of being a member of an online chat group in which members shared such material and of having approximately 9,400 images and videos of child sexual abuse in his home and on his cell phone. It is alleged that among these images were those showing the sexual abuse of babies. Boston resident Cess Frazier, 32, is charged with receiving child sexual abuse material. He is accused of having over 100 child sexual abuse material files on his cell phone. 'Each case serves as a difficult reminder that child predators are embedded in our communities. Some take on roles that increase their direct contact with children, while others prey on children from behind a keyboard,' U.S. Attorney Foley said in the release. 'But make no mistake, we will identify, arrest, and hold every one of them accountable, no matter how long it takes or how far we have to go.' The FBI urges the public to 'remain vigilant' and report suspected child exploitation by visiting or by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI (225-5324) or your local FBI field office. More national news Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Yahoo
Five charged in Massachusetts during ‘Operation Restore Justice' nationwide child sex abuse crackdown
BOSTON (WWLP) – The United States Department of Justice announced on Wednesday that 205 child sex abuse offenders across the country have been arrested as a result of 'Operation Restore Justice,' including five in Massachusetts. According to the Department of Justice, this operation was conducted across five days from April 28 to May 2 by all 55 FBI field offices, the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section in the Department's Criminal Division, and U.S. Attorney's Offices throughout the nation. Mugshots released in Massachusetts 'Operation No Love' fentanyl takedown This team was organized to identify, track, and arrest child sex predators across the United States. A total of 205 child sexual abuse offenders within the country were arrested as a result of the operation, including school leaders, members of law enforcement, and registered sex offenders. Those arrested were accused of crimes ranging from possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to child sex trafficking. In the District of Massachusetts, the following individuals were arrested and charged as a result of Operation Restore Justice: Former Assistant Director of Admissions at Emmanuel College Jacob Henriques , 29, of Boston, is charged with attempted sex trafficking of a minor. Henriques is accused of soliciting an underage college applicant to engage in commercial sex with him. Level 1 sex offender Justin Ouimette , 34, of Holyoke, is charged with possessing CSAM. Officers seized over 400 files depicting CSAM from Ouimette's home, including files depicting the abuse of victims as young as three years old. The defendant has a prior 2022 state conviction for possessing CSAM. Warren Messeck , 75, of Agawam, is charged with possessing CSAM. Messeck was allegedly identified as a user of an internet-based peer-to-peer network downloading CSAM. Officers seized over 40 electronic devices from his residence, and over 10,000 CSAM files were found on six of the seized devices. Brandon Bendall , 49, of Wareham, is charged with possessing and receiving CSAM. According to court documents, Bendall was identified as a member of an online chat group in which members viewed and posted CSAM. During a search of Bendall's residence and cell phone, approximately 9,400 images and videos of CSAM, including images of children as young as infants being sexually abused, were allegedly located. Cess Frazier, 32, of Boston, is charged with receiving CSAM. It is alleged that approximately 100 media files depicting CSAM were saved on the defendant's phone. 'Protecting children from exploitation is among the most sacred responsibilities we have in law enforcement,' said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley for the District of Massachusetts. 'Each case serves as a difficult reminder that child predators are embedded in our communities. Some take on roles that increase their direct contact with children, while others prey on children from behind a keyboard. But make no mistake, we will identify, arrest, and hold every one of them accountable, no matter how long it takes or how far we have to go. As Child Abuse Prevention Month came to a close, Operation Restore Justice delivered a powerful and urgent message: protecting children is not just a worthy cause we recognize, it is a mission we carry out every day. We will not relent in our pursuit of those who exploit children, and we are grateful to our law enforcement partners for their tireless work to bring these predators to justice. This work will not stop.' Local News Headlines WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WWLP.
CBS News
07-05-2025
- CBS News
Massachusetts college employee charged with soliciting prospective student for sex denied bail
A federal judge has denied bail to a former assistant admissions director at Emmanuel College in Boston charged with soliciting a prospective student for sex after she came to the school for a tour in April and he allegedly accessed her personal data. "It's just crazy to think that somebody like that could be on campus," said student Kelsey Rioux who received an email from the school informing students of the case. Jacob Henriques, 29, was arrested last Friday and went before a judge Wednesday for a bail hearing in which the defense requested home confinement and a GPS monitoring device. "Obsessive and predatory" The judge called his behavior "obsessive and predatory" as she ordered him held. Federal prosecutors say over the past year Henriques allegedly solicited as many as 16 young women, offering the 17-year-old he's charged with $400 to "have some fun" while sending pornographic material. "There are no conditions of release that will ensure the safety of the community," argued prosecutor Craig Estes. He says Henriques relentlessly texted the 17-year-old until she blocked his phone and he allegedly started emailing. Estes said Henriques also tried to obstruct justice by breaking his cellphone and throwing it in the trash before investigators arrived at his Boston apartment to question him. It was at that time, he says, Henriques confessed to his behavior. Mother says daughter "living in fear" The mother of one of his alleged victims pleaded with the judge to hold Henriques saying, "My daughter is living in fear, and the possibility of his release intensifies the fear not only for her but her entire family." The Department of Justice says the arrest of Henriques was part of a wider federal probe named Operation Restore Justice to track and arrest alleged child sexual predators. The DOJ says more than 200 arrests were made from April 28 to May 2.
Miami Herald
05-05-2025
- Miami Herald
College admissions employee tries sex trafficking teen applicant in MA, feds say
An administrator at a private Catholic college in Boston faces a federal sex trafficking charge after prosecutors said he kept texting a 17-year-old prospective student, offering to pay her $400 for sex acts with him. Jacob Henriques, 29, who was the assistant admissions director at Emmanuel College, gave the teen a tour of the school and then started texting her — without revealing who he was — hours later on April 25, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts. She's one of at least three admitted or prospective students Henriques met with that day and started contacting, offering to 'pay them for some fun,' prosecutors said. Henriques also offered to share pornography and sent pornographic content to some of them, according to prosecutors. Henriques, of Boston, has potentially preyed on a number of victims between 2024 and 2025, according to the FBI, which is investigating. The agency's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force is looking for additional possible victims. Now, Henriques is charged with attempted sex trafficking of a minor, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a May 2 news release. He was arrested the evening of May 2. He was due in Boston federal court on May 5. Attorney information for him wasn't immediately available. The text messages When Henriques showed the 17-year-old girl around Emmanuel College on April 25, prosecutors said he asked her where she went to high school and what grade she was in. Then, 'within hours of finishing the tour,' he messaged the phone number she included on her college admissions form and offered her $400 to have ''some fun' right now,' prosecutors said. Henriques also said he had pornographic videos and photos 'for her,' according to prosecutors. He texted her again that night, still not revealing who he was or how he had her contact information, prosecutors said. Although she continued to reject Henriques' offers, he wouldn't stop texting the teen, according to prosecutors. In his text messages, Henriques told her ''porn' and '$' was ready for her,'' then 'sent (her) five pornographic videos depicting men and women engaged in sex acts and asked her whether or not she wanted to participate in a 'gangbang,'' prosecutors said. He kept questioning whether she'd like to engage in sex acts with him and offered to buy 'anything she wanted' if she agreed, according to prosecutors. After she blocked his number, prosecutors said he contacted her, asking for sex acts, this time via email. For three days — from the day Henriques gave the teen a tour of Emmanuel College up until April 28 — he visited her online profile 47 times, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. When Emmanuel College staff learned he was accused of predatory behavior, the school fired him, the college said in a statement, according to the Boston Herald. 'Emmanuel College is saddened, angered, and shocked by these serious federal allegations that have been brought against a former employee….We have cooperated fully with authorities from the moment this matter came to our attention and will continue to do so,' the college said. Online search results show Emmanuel College listed Henriques as a 'proud alum' of the school's class of 2021 and that he reviewed college applications from local regions of Massachusetts. His full employee profile is no longer visible as of May 5. The FBI urges potential victims, or parents of minors alleged to be victimized by Henriques, to share information by filling out an online form. If Henriques is convicted of attempted sex trafficking of a minor, he'd face a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years in federal prison, at least five years of supervised release and up to a $250,000 fine, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Yahoo
Emmanuel College worker accused of attempted sex trafficking
BOSTON (WWLP) – A man from Boston working in the admissions department at Emmanuel College is accused of offering to pay an underage girl who applied there for sex. Former Mass. State Police Sergeant convicted of extortion in CDL scheme Federal authorities say 29-year-old Jacob Henriques is due in court Monday after being arrested over the weekend for attempted sex trafficking of a minor. They say he texted a 17-year-old girl last week after she took a tour of the school with him, and he offered her money for sex. Henriques is also accused of sending her adult videos. She is one of at least four victims that he is accused of contacting. Henriques is expected to appear in federal court on Monday. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
