Longmeadow Police Chief Robert F.Siano was among those making the announcement.
SPRINGFIELD –A 33-year-old Illinois man has been charged with 18 counts of child exploitation charges after he allegedly induced a 15-year-old girl to travel from Massachusetts to Connecticut so he could make child pornography.
James Waddell, of Montrose, Ill. ,was charged with 16 counts of sexual exploitation of a child, one count of inducing travel to engage in illegal sexual activity and one count of online enticement, according to a release issued by U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz.
A federal indictment, unsealed after Waddell’s arrest Tuesday in Illinois, states that the incidents occurred in 2009 and 2010. It also alleges that Waddell inducted the minor to travel across state lines so he could have sex with her.
Although the release does not specify where in Massachusetts the girl was allegedly lured from, it names Longmeadow Police Chief Robert F. Siano as among those announcing Waddell’s arrest.
Siano was not available for comment Thursday.
Waddell had his initial appearance Tuesday in federal court in the Southern District of Illinois, according to the release. If convicted on the charges, he faces up to life in federal prison.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex J. Grant of Ortiz’s Springfield Branch Unit. Grant was also not available for comment.
Others participating in the announcement included: Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Colonel Marian McGovern, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; and Bruce M. Foucart, special agent in charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.