Oneida County Man Pleads Guilty to Enticing and Coercing a Minor and to Receiving Child PornographyArticle

ALBANY, NEW YORK – John Secor, Jr., age 46, of Rome, New York, pled guilty on March 25, 2026, in federal court to enticing and coercing a minor and to receiving child pornography.First Assistant United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III and Erin Keegan, Special Agent in Charge of the Buffalo Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) made the announcement.As part of his plea, Secor admitted that in May of 2025, he began chatting online with a 16-year-old Oneida County girl on Facebook who had explicitly told Secor her age. Secor’s chats with the child quickly became sexual in nature with Secor requesting that the child send him sexually explicit images and videos of herself, which she did. Secor also admitted that he arranged a meeting with the child during which Secor planned to engage in sex acts with the child.First Assistant United States Attorney John A.

Sarcone III stated, “This defendant’s actions were calculated, predatory, and profoundly disturbing. He targeted a minor through Facebook, manipulated her, and sought to exploit her for sexual purposes. Let me be clear: anyone who engages in this kind of conduct will be aggressively investigated, prosecuted, and punished to the fullest extent of the law. Social media companies must also recognize their responsibility in preventing such exploitation on their platforms and take stronger, proactive measures to protect vulnerable users.

I thank HSI and the New York State Police for their commitment to keeping our communities safe.”“Secor has admitted to deeply disturbing and exploitative behavior toward a child, and after today’s plea, he faces decades in federal prison,” said Erin Keegan, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations Buffalo. “Homeland Security Investigations works every day to bring predators like Secor to justice. We hope that today’s guilty plea is a positive step forward for the victim and her family as they begin to heal and move forward.”New York State Police Superintendent Steven G. James said, “This case underscores the very real and ongoing threat that online predators pose to our children.

The defendant’s actions were deliberate, measured, and manipulative, targeting a vulnerable minor for exploitation. The New York State Police remain fully committed to working alongside our federal partners to identify, investigate, and hold accountable those who seek to harm children. We will continue to use every available resource to protect our communities and ensure offenders are brought to justice.”The charge of enticement and coercion of a minor carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum sentence of life. The charge of receipt of child pornography carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years.

Both charges carry a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of at least five years and up to life.Secor’s sentencing is currently scheduled for July 21, 2026, before Chief United States District Judge Brenda K. Sannes in Syracuse, New York. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statutes the defendant is convicted of violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.HSI and NYSP investigated this case, which is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adrian LaRochelle as part of Project Safe Childhood.Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.