Connecticut woman charged with sexual coercion of 13-year-old Long Island boy
Suffolk County police assisted in the investigation, along with the FBI's child exploitation task force and the Wethersfield Police Department. Credit: James Carbone
A Connecticut woman allegedly coerced a 13-year-old Long Island boy to send her a sexually explicit video of himself and later picked up the boy and brought him to her home where she attempted to engage in sexual activity, according federal prosecutors.
Amily Colon, 31, was arrested Friday on a federal criminal complaint for alleged sexual coercion of a minor she met online, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Connecticut announced.
Colon, who identified herself as "Alice," was ordered detained Friday after appearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas O. Farrish in Hartford, Connecticut.
The defendant allegedly communicated with the boy through the Discord app and prosecutors said the conversations became sexually explicit. Colon allegedly sent sexually explicit images and videos of herself to the victim.
On June 26, Colon traveled to Long Island, picked up the boy and brought him to her Wethersfield, Connecticut, home. She brought him back to Long Island the next day and dropped him off a few blocks from his home, prosecutors said. Colon denied any sexual acts occurred, according to a motion for detention pending trial.
A criminal complaint outlining the allegations remained sealed as of Saturday morning, according to federal court records. Colon was represented at Friday's court appearance by a public defender who could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday. The records did not indicate whether Colon entered a plea.
The FBI located social media posts and journal entries "that raise significant concerns regarding the danger she poses to the community and children in particular," according to the motion.
Colon allegedly admitted owning the Discord account and communicating with the victim as well as picking him up in New York. She also allegedly admitted to prosecutors that she engaged with other minors online between 13 and 16 years old and that law enforcement would find child pornography on her cellphone, according to the motion.
Colon faces charges of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor and transportation of a minor to engage in sexual activity. She faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life, according to federal prosecutors.
Suffolk County police assisted in the investigation along with the FBI's child exploitation task force's in New Haven and Long Island as well as the Wethersfield Police Department.
Suffolk police deferred any questions on the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and could not comment on whether the boy had been reported missing while in Connecticut.
Discord, a communications platform with video, voice and text capabilities, states it has "zero-tolerance policy for child sexual abuse material" and the company in 2023 announced it developed new software to detect illicit material.
It's unclear whether the company alerted law enforcement in this case.
A probable cause hearing is scheduled for July 31.
Cases of child exploitation can be reported to cybertipline.com. And for information on Project Safe Childhood, which aims to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse, visit justice.gov/psc.
Joe Werkmeister joined Newsday in 2022 and covers Suffolk County government and politics. He is a graduate of St. Bonaventure University and previously worked as the editor of two North Fork community newspapers.
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