A Bronx man is facing up to 60 years in prison for allegedly engaging in sexually explicit text message conversations with more than 15 underage girls in order to solicit pornographic photos and videos from them, according to federal authorities.
Winston Colon Correa, 31, who was arrested last week, has been charged with sexual exploitation of a child, receipt of child pornography as well as possession of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Colon Correa is accused of sending lewd text messages to underage girls — beginning in May 2022 — as part of his quest to obtain child pornography. In the course of his communications, he allegedly induced the girls to produce pornography and send it to him. Authorities said that Colon Correa had videos of underage girls engaged in sexually explicit conduct in his possession.
Investigators uncovered the existence of the text messages when they seized his phone, along with approximately 20 files believed to contain child pornography.
“As alleged, Colon Correa repeatedly sought out minor girls, some as young as 12 years old, to engage in sexually explicit conversations and convince them to send pornographic videos of themselves,” said Damian Williams, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
According to Williams, Colon Correa allegedly knew that his victims were minors, yet still engaged in this conduct and lied to them about his own age to gain their trust. He falsely told them he was only 17 years old.
“This office will relentlessly pursue predators who sexually exploit children, whether online or in person,” added Williams, who also praised the work of the FBI and the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department in connection with the investigation.
If Colon Correa gets convicted of each of the three counts, he could face up to 60 years in prison. Williams’ office was unable to provide where in the Bronx Colon Correa resides.
Reach Steven Goodstein at sgoodstein@schnepsmedia.com or (718) 260–8326. For more coverage, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @bronxtimes
