BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — Warning that this article contains graphic material that may be disturbing to some readers.
Newly-released federal court documents reveal more details in the case of a Bakersfield police detective who has been charged in federal court with sexually exploiting a 15-year-old girl and receiving child sexual abuse material, according to a criminal complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.
Marc Lugo of Bakersfield faces charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and receipt of material involving the sexual exploitation of a minor, according to court documents filed this week.
In an affidavit filed by an HSI Special Agent, it alleges that Lugo, an employee of the Bakersfield Police Department, who formerly worked in the department’s Special Victims Unit and a K9 handler, used multiple social media accounts to coerce a teenage girl into sending sexually explicit photos and videos of herself.
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According to the complaint, a cybertip was submitted by Instagram to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children reporting that between September 20, 2023 and April 19, 2025, a man from Bakersfield appears to “have enticed a 15-year-old-minor, at the time of initial enticement, to engage in sexual conversation and to produce and share child sexual abuse material (CSAM).”
KCSO said in May 2025, the investigation was initiated after the Sheriff’s Office received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), identifying an Instagram account that had engaged in explicit communications with a 15-year-old girl from South Carolina.
The document detailed the suspect’s Instagram account names and emails associated with it. The complaint said a KCSO detective authored a search warrant on Meta, Inc. for access to the suspect’s Instagram accounts.
The document included almost five pages of messages over the course of a year and a half, allegedly exchanged by the suspect and the victim, detailing sexual material, requesting child pornography, and acknowledging the victim’s age as 15.
Some of the messages reportedly sent by Lugo to the 15-year-old girl were:
October 21, 2023: “What I want is the school video. Set up the same way in the stall but lift up your shirt and bra…I better see that cute face of yours.”November 1, 2023: “Here’s what you’re going to do. Set the phone down. With just a bra on, sit down with your legs spread…”December 19, 2023: “I’ve had to take a little break but you know what daddy wants to see. Send me a video”December 21, 2025: “Are you daddy’s 15 year old slut?”
Eyewitness News has chosen not to include the full exchange, as they are very graphic in nature.
The cybertip report traced multiple IP addresses allegedly linked to the accounts back to Lugo’s home in Bakersfield.
{p}FILE – Marc Lugo, a detective with the Bakersfield Police Department, was arrested and booked into jail on multiple charges. PHOTO: KBAK/KBFX{/p}
The document reads that at the time, Lugo was on paid administrative leave due to an unrelated medical issue. Lugo’s wife currently works as a Special Victims Unit detective with the Bakersfield Police Department, according to the federal document.
In the documents, law enforcement went to the victim’s location, which was previously reported to be in South Carolina. It read that the victim was 15 years old at the time of the first interaction with the suspect, and was 16 at the last interaction.
A search warrant was authorized on May 5, 2025. In the search, electronics were seized.
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According to the document, hidden applications called “Photo Vault” and “Best Secret Folder” were found on the phones. The document said several photos and videos of the victim engaged in sexual material. Other material on the phone included a screen recording of an Instagram conversation from the victim’s account.
On June 18, 2025, an interview was conducted with the victim. In the documents, the victim admitted to sending explicit photographs of herself to several individuals she met online.
She said her interaction with Lugo initially began on TikTok, but eventually transitioned over to Instagram. The report said, “She said that they never met in person, but discussed it, without making any serious plans. She did not know his real name.”
The victim’s phone was analyzed, and investigators said it detailed the initial conversation between the suspect and the victim on TikTok. It detailed the usernames and that the suspect was told about the victim’s age in the first 12 hours after initiating a conversation.
Other federal documents said on October 30, 2025, Marc Lugo was taken into custody by the United States Marshal Service. Criminal defense attorney David A. Torres represented Lugo.
Lugo is a 13-year veteran of the Bakersfield Police Department.
A federal detention hearing is set for next Tuesday, November 4, and a preliminary hearing is set for November 13.
If convicted, Lugo could face up to 30 years in a federal prison.