Prosecutors said the Mexican National posed as a teenager on instagram and threatened victims’ families to force them into sending sexually explicit images

A Brooklyn man was sentenced Monday to 12 years in federal prison for coercing and enticing minors into producing sexually explicit images. Luis Velez, a Mexican national who does not have legal immigration status in the United States, was sentenced by US District Judge Pamela Chen in federal court in Brooklyn. Prosecutors said Velez will be deported after completing his prison term. He pleaded guilty to the charge in July 2024.

Following an investigation by FBI New York and @EDNYnews, Luis Velez was sentenced to 12 years in prison for coercion and enticement of a minor.

Read more at: https://t.co/h7bF3xcATl pic.twitter.com/eb2vdvnQAA

— FBI New York (@NewYorkFBI) February 2, 2026

The sentence was announced by US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. of the Eastern District of New York and James Barnacle Jr., the FBI’s assistant director in charge of the New York Field Office. According to court filings, Velez used social media to manipulate and threaten children into sending sexually explicit images. Prosecutors said that in 2022, when Velez was 26, he posed online as a 13-year-old boy and began communicating with an 11-year-old girl through Instagram. After convincing her to send explicit images, authorities said Velez threatened to kill her family if she did not continue complying.

Investigators said Velez used similar tactics with multiple other minors, at times posing as a boy and at other times as a girl to gain victims’ trust before demanding explicit material. In some instances, prosecutors said, he even threatened other family members to maintain control over the victims. In a statement, Nocella said the defendant “preyed on children” by exploiting fear and manipulation, and urged parents to speak with children about the dangers of strangers online.

Barnacle also said the FBI remains focused on protecting children from online sexual exploitation and credited law enforcement partners for their work on the case, including the Boston Police Department. The case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide Justice Department initiative aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse.