Plea Entered In Fed Child Porn Case Initiated By Arrest In Vernon

VERNON, CT — A 51-year-old Hartford man has entered a guilty plea in a federal child pornography case investigated, in part, by Vernon police, a leading prosecutor said.

John Durham, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut, said Wednesday that that Ronald Daniel entered the plea for one count of production of child pornography. Pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, the court proceeding occurred via videoconference.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on at least two occasions in 2018, Daniel was accused of sexually abusing a prepubescent female and took cellphone photos of his activities. He is accused in case records of distributing some of the images, including videos depicting child pornography, through the Kik mobile application, Durham said.

Daniel's Kik username was "letsgogetluv," case records show.

Daniel has been detained since his arrest on related state charges on June 10, 2019.

Sentencing was scheduled for May 24. Daniel faces a mandatory minimum prison term of 15 years and a maximum prison term of 30 years.

Durham said the case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, Connecticut State Police and the Vernon Police Department.

In June 2019 Vernon police charged Daniel at the state level with:

• 4 counts of first-degree sexual assault with a victim younger than 13
• 3 counts of employing a minor in an obscene performance
• 4 counts of aggravated sexual assault with a victim younger than 13
• 4 counts of illegal sexual contact with a minor
• 3 counts of third-degree sexual assault
• Risk of injury to a child
• 2 counts of first-degree unlawful restraint
• 2 counts of second-degree threatening
• Third-degree assault

Daniel's bond in the state charges is $750,000 and the case is still active, judicial system records show.

He is scheduled his next court appearance on April 30.