Westerly Man Sentenced to 180 Years in Prison for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

Westerly Man Sentenced to 180 Years in Prison for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

A Westerly man was sentenced on Friday to 180 years in federal prison after admitting to repeatedly persuading and coercing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct, according to the United States Attorney's office in Providence.

Jay Gaccione, 41, pleaded guilty on November 13, 2018, to five counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, one count of distribution of child pornography, and two counts of possession of child pornography.

The Investigation

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According to the U.S. Attorney, on November 4, 2016, agents from Homeland Security Investigations and members of the Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force executed a court-authorized search warrant at Gaccione’s Westerly residence and seized, among other items, several electronic and digital storage devices.

Forensic audits of the devices revealed numerous videos and images of child pornography produced by Gaccione with a victim between the ages of 12 and 14-years-old.

According to the U.S. Attorney, the investigation also determined that Gaccione sought to obtain images from an individual he communicated with online of a child as young as three-years-old being sexually assaulted.