Michael Van Culin, 32, of Monroeville, N.J., was sentenced to 10 years in state prison, including 8 ½ years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Benjamin C. Telsey in Salem County. He pleaded guilty on Feb. 29 to a first-degree charge of manufacturing child pornography. In pleading guilty, Van Culin admitted that he recorded a video of the 16-year-old Canadian girl while she stripped naked on her webcam. He will be required to register as a sex offender under Megan’s Law and will be subject to parole supervision for life.
Deputy Attorney General Lilianne M. Daniel prosecuted Van Culin and handled the sentencing for the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau.
Van Culin was arrested on Feb. 10, 2014 as part of “Operation Predator Alert,” a joint operation by the Division of Criminal Justice and ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). A total of 28 individuals were arrested in Operation Predator Alert, in two separate sweeps, for allegedly using a file-sharing network to download and distribute child pornography, including child rape videos, on the Internet. The state’s investigation revealed that Van Culin allegedly obtained sexually explicit photos or videos of four girls: three who were 14 to 16 years old at the time of the alleged conduct and one who was 17. He allegedly attempted to blackmail a fifth girl into sending him sexually explicit photos, but she did not comply. In pleading guilty, Van Culin admitted only his conduct involving the Canadian girl.
“Van Culin manipulated and hacked his way into the lives of young girls on the Internet, blackmailing his vulnerable victims and taking their innocence as ransom,” said Attorney General Porrino. “We have put this sexual predator behind bars for many years so that he can’t harm other children.”
“We urge parents to warn their children about this dark side of social media, and if they suspect a predator is stalking their child, to contact us immediately,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “We’ll continue to work collaboratively with our federal and state law enforcement partners, using our expertise in investigating cybercrime to catch offenders like Van Culin.”
“The use of social media, apps and other platforms as grooming tools by child sexual predators represents a growing threat,” said Special Agent in Charge Terence S. Opiola of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Newark. “This threat is one that, with the cooperation of our law enforcement partners in New Jersey, Homeland Security Investigations is meeting head on. HSI is fully committed to protecting the most vulnerable among our society.”
At the time of Van Culin’s arrest, he was charged in connection with the Canadian victim, who was 16 years old at the time of the alleged criminal conduct. Van Culin coerced the girl into stripping naked on her webcam while he recorded her remotely with his computer. He previously engaged in online chats with her in which he elicited information about her life that he used to hack into her email account and get other personal information, including email addresses for her family and friends. He had password decoding software on his computer that generates likely passwords for a person from basic information such as the person’s name, date of birth, favorite sports, and names of pets and siblings. Van Culin ultimately blackmailed the girl by threatening to expose personal information about her to her family using the contact information from her email account. Van Culin’s computer contained a video of the visibly shaken girl completely disrobing in front of a mirror under his orders.
Further investigation by HSI, the Division of Criminal Justice and partnering agencies in the various jurisdictions led to the discovery of additional victims and new charges against Van Culin. The other girls he allegedly blackmailed or, in one case, attempted to blackmail, lived in Arizona, Philadelphia, Maryland and Seattle. In each case, Van Culin used similar methods, befriending the teenage girls on popular social media sites or in chat rooms, usually presenting himself as a teenage boy. He allegedly obtained nude photos of the other victims or sensitive personal information about them through those chats or by hacking into their email or social media accounts, which he then used to blackmail them into sending him explicit photos of themselves or engaging in sexually explicit conduct on a webcam. The guilty plea on which he was sentenced today resolved all charges filed in the joint investigation.
Deputy Attorney General Daniel presented the case to the state grand jury for the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau. The investigation was conducted by Detective Richard DaSilva Jr., former Detective Sgt. Thomas Turley and Deputy Attorney General Daniel, under the supervision of Deputy Attorney General Michael A. Monahan, who is Bureau Chief, Deputy Attorney General Veronica Allende, Deputy Bureau Chief, former Deputy Bureau Chief Kenneth Sharpe, Lt. Lisa A. Shea and Deputy Chief of Detectives William Fredrick.
Attorney General Porrino commended the special agents of the ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Cherry Hill, N.J., and San Jose, Calif., Offices who conducted the investigation. Attorney General Porrino also acknowledged the valuable assistance of members of the New Jersey State Police; detective constables in Ontario, Canada; special agents of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Tucson, Ariz.; the Washington County Sheriff’s Office in Maryland; and the Seattle Police Department.
Attorney General Porrino and Director Honig urged anyone who suspects improper contact by persons communicating with children on the Internet or possible exploitation or sexual abuse of children to contact the New Jersey Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Tipline at 888-648-6007.
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