A Stratford man is facing several child exploitation charges after allegedly victimizing a teen through Snapchat, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
According to court documents, 22-year-old Alexander Dilella is accused of using various online applications, including Snapchat, Omegle and Facetime, to communicate with young girls, some as young as 13 or 14 years old, to try and engage in illegal sexual activity.
Court documents say that during one Snapchat exchange with a 14-year-old victim, Dilella referred to the girl as a "child porn slave" and demanded that she send him a sexually explicit image of herself, which she did.
On May 24, 2021, officials said that investigators seized Dilella's cell phone and discovered videos of prepubescent children being sexually abused.
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Dilella is facing several charges including enticement of a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity, receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography.
Dilella appeared in court Wednesday and was taken into custody pending the completion of his detention hearing in a few days.
Homeland Security Investigations, Stratford and Milford police departments are investigating.
