Jacob Daskal Charged with Enticing a 15-Year-Old Girl to Travel to Engage in Sexual Activity
Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, a three-count indictment was unsealed charging Jacob Daskal with coercing a minor to engage in illicit sexual conduct, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and travelling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. Daskal was arrested today and is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo.
Seth D. DuCharme, Acting United States Attorney for the
Eastern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant
Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office
(FBI), announced the arrest and charges.
“As alleged, Daskal, who was almost 60 years old when these
crimes were committed, exploited the vulnerability of a young teenager by
grooming her for sex and enticing her into having sexual relations with him,”
stated Acting United States Attorney DuCharme.
“Protecting underage minors from flagrant sexual abuse and predators
like the defendant will always be a high priority of this Office and the
Department of Justice.” Mr. DuCharme
expressed his grateful appreciation to the Kings County District Attorney’s
Office and the New York City Police Department for their assistance with the
case.
“A man who founded an organization aimed at creating a safer
community should know the difference between right and wrong. As we allege, Mr. Daskal’s position of
influence may have helped him attempt to silence his victim, but it won’t stop
the FBI from holding him accountable. Sexually exploiting a teenaged girl is a
crime that carries severe consequences, and we hope Mr. Daskal’s arrest will
demonstrate to other victims that they can come forward. We are asking anyone
with information about this investigation or the identities of additional
victims to call us at 212-384-1000,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge
Sweeney.
As set forth in court filings, between August and November
2017, Daskal, then age 59, allegedly engaged in a sexual relationship with a
15-year-old girl whom he took into his home in Brooklyn, where he groomed her
for sex. During the summer of 2017,
Daskal is alleged to have engaged in sexual relations with the victim primarily
at his residence and at his summer home in South Fallsburg, New York. In October 2017, the victim moved to Chicago
to attend a new school and live with another family. While the victim was in Chicago, Daskal
communicated with her via text message and over Skype video chat. He requested that she pose nude for him
during their video chats and send him nude photographs as well. On November 5,
2017, Daskal traveled by plane to Chicago to visit the victim and brought her
to a hotel room he had booked. There, he
engaged in sexual intercourse and oral sex with the victim.
Throughout the abuse, Daskal was the founder and chief of
the Borough Park Shomrim Society, a private anti-crime patrol group, a position
in the community which led the victim to feel threatened when he told her not
to tell anyone about their sexual relationship.
The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the
defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted of the charges, Daskal faces a
mandatory minimum of 10 years’ imprisonment and a maximum of life in prison.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by the office’s
Civil Rights Section. Assistant United
States Attorneys Erin Reid and Jonathan Algor are in charge of the prosecution.
https://twitter.com/NewYorkFBI/status/1367557779704143877
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