BOSTON, Aug. 20, 2013—A forensic review of a child pornography suspect’s computers and cameras led investigators to video files depicting his alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl he met through online chats, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.
GERALDO DESOUZA (D.O.B. 9/13/71) of Revere was indicted Aug. 14 and arraigned today in Suffolk Superior Court on counts of aggravated rape of a child, dissemination of material harmful to minors, posing or exhibiting a child in a state of nudity, photographing or recording an unsuspecting person in a state of nudity or partial nudity, and possession of a false Registry of Motor Vehicles document.
The charges stem from activity between 2009 and earlier this year, when the two charged victims were between the ages of 11 and 15.
Assistant District Attorney Christina Miller recommended that Desouza be held on $75,000 cash bail and be ordered to stay away from the victims and any other children under the age of 16. Clerk Magistrate Connie Wong granted both requests.
“Every parent and guardian should be concerned about this case,” Conley said. “The evidence suggests an offender who began grooming his victims when they were as young as 11 years old. In some cases, the victims sent him explicit photographs of themselves while their parents were in the very next room. Online predators will lie, flatter, and threaten children to get what they want. Kids need to know about limits and personal safety, and parents and guardians have to be the ones to teach them. Most important, though, is that kids and teens know they can come to trusted adults when they’re scared or concerned about something happening online.”
Desouza was first identified amid an investigation by State Police into online child pornography distribution through peer-to-peer file-sharing services. Troopers were able to identify multiple specimens of child pornography on his computer and tracked his internet protocol address to a residence in Hyde Park. They referred the case to Boston Police.
Boston Police executed a search warrant at that residence in February, recovering multiple laptop computers, a digital camera, a camcorder, DVDs, and other devices storing still and video images that depicted children engaged in sexual activity. They also recovered a counterfeit Massachusetts identification card. The defendant was not at home.
An examination by Boston Police and Suffolk prosecutors of the various devices provided investigators with evidence that Desouza wasn’t merely collecting and sharing child pornography but was actively seeking children to provide him with explicit images of themselves.
“We believe he targeted young girls, often as young as the sixth grade, and established relationships with them,” Conley said. “Once he gained their trust, he would ask them for photos and videos that were absolutely inappropriate and illegal. All too often, they complied. These victims now have to live with the possibility that he shared and distributed these images to other offenders, who in turn shared and distributed them to others. Parents and caregivers need to drive home the fact that digital photos can be sent far and wide to absolutely anyone with the click of a button.”
Desouza allegedly set up accounts on Facebook, Orkut, and ooVoo and used them to make contact with girls under 16. In at least one case, Desouza initially presented himself as a 16-year-old boy, though he later revealed himself to be much older.
Through the chat services, Desouza allegedly enticed the girls into sending him explicit images of themselves, either through cell phone text messages or through their webcams during the chat sessions. During the chat sessions, Desouza allegedly covered his own computer’s webcam so the victims did not see him. He did, however, allegedly send explicit photos of himself to at least two of the girls. In some cases, he allegedly threatened to post the nude pictures of the girls online if they did not send him more pictures or participate in video chats where he would tell them to pose in the nude and, at times, instruct them how to pose.
In one known incident, Desouza allegedly arranged to meet one of the girls in person. After taking her to Copley Place and to the zoo, Desouza allegedly brought her to his Hyde Park home and engaged in sexual activity with her. Because she was under 16 at the time, the girl could not legally consent to that activity.
After Boston Police executed the search warrant at his Hyde Park residence, his roommates demanded that he move out. He later took up residence in Revere and was arrested at his place of employment in downtown Boston on March 29. He has been in custody since that time.
Kate Lagana is the DA’s assigned victim-witness advocate. Jacquelyn Lamont, the DA’s director of youth safety and outreach, conducted the forensic interviews with the two charged victims. Desouza is represented by attorney Steven Key.
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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
