Boston Man Sentenced to 22 Years in Prison for Child Exploitation Charges

BOSTON – A Boston man was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for sexual exploitation of children as well as distributing and possessing child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

Robinson Alberto Baez-Nova, 39, of Jamaica Plain, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to 22 years in prison followed by a lifetime supervised release. In August 2023, Baez-Nova pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of children, one count of distribution of child pornography and two counts of possession of child pornography. 

“This Office will do everything in our power to protect children and punish those who traffic in child pornography. Mr. Baez-Nova callously preyed upon some of society’s most vulnerable people, perpetuated a cycle of harm and exploitation and inflicted irreparable damage upon innocent lives. Today’s sentence ensures that this predator will be removed from our communities for nearly two decades and should be a stark warning for anyone who exploits children,” said Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “There is no higher priority than protecting the vulnerable, especially children, from this type of horrific conduct.”   

“Robinson Alberto Baez-Nova is a manipulative sexual predator who eagerly took advantage of children living in poverty in the Dominican Republic to sexually exploit them, apparently thinking he would just continue to fly under the radar,” Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division. “Today’s lengthy sentence proves him wrong and should send a message to anyone else sexually exploiting children: FBI Boston’s Child Exploitation – Human Trafficking Task Force will investigate, hold you accountable, and ensure your destination is federal prison.”

In November 2020, Baez-Nova was identified as the owner of a Google account that uploaded images and videos of CSAM between November 2018 and August 2020. 

A subsequent search of Baez-Nova’s cellphone revealed a WhatsApp chat with a 17-year-old male living in the Dominican Republic who had access to his nine-year-old niece. Beginning in or around July 2020, Baez-Nova said that he would send money to the individual and his family in the Dominican Republic if the individual produced CSAM of the minor niece. Ultimately, the individual sent Baez-Nova five different videos of his minor niece in response to the Baez-Nova’s specific requests.

Additionally, a separate WhatsApp chat with a 14-year-old minor female residing in the Dominican Republic was also found on Baez-Nova’s cellphone. In the conversations, Baez-Nova solicited the minor female to obtain images and videos of “little kids” engaged in sexual conduct in exchange for money and sent the minor CSAM, including a video of the nine-year-old minor discussed above. 

In total, over 200 images and over 400 videos of CSAM were found on Baez-Nova’s cellphone and in his Google account.

Acting U.S. Attorney Levy, FBI SAC Cohen and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office; Nashua Police Department; Hillsborough County (N.H.) District Attorney’s Office; and Homeland Security Investigations, Boston Field Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mackenzie Duane and Mark Grady of the Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.