Press Release

California man sexually exploited children online across at least 18 states

Thursday, October 8, 2026

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A California man pleaded guilty to targeting child victims and persuading and coercing them into creating visual depictions of themselves engaged in sexually explicit conduct using online social media and messaging apps. 

According to court documents, Adrian Gutierrez, 22, of Ontario, California, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a minor involving a child residing in Kansas. 

From approximately May 2023 through October 2024, Gutierrez communicated with dozens of minors using multiple online platforms. He used persuasion and coercion to get 21 identified victims from Kansas and 17 other states to engage in sexually explicit conduct while transmitting live video calls with him.  Gutierrez often misrepresented his true identity and age by telling the victims he was also a minor of a similar age to the victim. Despite law enforcement efforts, many other victims were unable to be fully identified.  Some victims reside outside of the United States.

Gutierrez is scheduled to be sentenced on January 5, 2027. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

“The lessons of ‘stranger danger’ also apply to the internet. While Mr. Gutierrez mostly targeted children between the ages of ten and twelve, his victims were as young as nine years old,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser. “We encourage parents to talk to their children about internet safety and explain to them that not everyone is who they say they are or the age they claim, particularly online.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Audrey McCormick is prosecuting the case.

Project Safe Childhood
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

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ILLEGAL ALIEN BONNIE AND CLYDE: ICE Arrests Illegal Alien Couple After Multi-State Jewelry Theft Spree

 News Release

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY Office of Public Affairs

ILLEGAL ALIEN BONNIE AND CLYDE: ICE Arrests Illegal Alien Couple After Multi-State Jewelry Theft Spree Local authorities turned the suspects over to ICE custody WASHINGTON — The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the following statement after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested an illegal alien couple from Romania who have been charged with allegedly stealing jewelry across multiple states. According to local reporting, police in Nassau County, New York arrested Rudi Lacatusu and Mirabela Lacatusu, illegal aliens from Romania, on October 5, and charged them each with THREE counts of grand larceny after a series of jewelry thefts. Police said that the pair’s scheme involved driving up to a victim and pulling over to ask for directions. Then, Mirabela Lacatusu would allegedly get out of the vehicle to thank the victim for their act of kindness with a hug. While her arms were around the victim, she would unclasp their necklace and take it, then the pair would drive away. Police say the suspects carried out at least 14 robberies in the states of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Maryland. The stolen necklaces were valued between $2,000 and $3,000 each. Rudi Lacatusu Mirabela Lacatusu Following their arrest, the Nassau County Police turned the suspects over to ICE custody. “This ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ illegal alien couple from Romania has been charged with grand larceny after allegedly carrying out more than a dozen jewelry thefts across four states,” said DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “Thanks to local partners in New York, these illegal aliens are in ICE custody and will be removed from our country. If it were up to sanctuary politicians like Governor Kathy Hochul, these criminals would be back on the streets to rob more Americans. The brave men and women of ICE are working hard every day to remove illegal aliens like these thieves from our country. Under President Trump’s leadership, ICE has been unleashed to enforce our nation’s laws and make America safe again.” Both suspects entered the United States illegally at an unknown time and location.  Under Governor Kathy Hochul, New York has become a hotbed of illegal alien crime. Some of the recent illegal alien crimes in the sanctuary state include:  In June, ICE lodged a detainer for Aureliano Antonio Melendez Reyes, an illegal alien from El Salvador, after he was arrested for raping a 16-year-old girl in Huntington, New York.  In April, the New York City Department of Corrections refused to honor an ICE detainer for Roman Ceron Amatitla, an illegal alien from Mexico, who was charged with murder and arson in Queens County, New York.  In March, ICE arrested Bryan David Tasiguano Leon, an illegal alien from Ecuador and Latin Kings gang member, who had been released by New York sanctuary politicians despite being charged with assault.  In March, ICE lodged a detainer for Bairon Posada-Hernandez, a four-time deported illegal alien from Honduras, after he was arrested for shoving two bystanders, including an 83-year-old Air Force veteran, onto subway tracks in New York City.  In January, ICE arrested Rafael Andres Rubio Bohorquez, an illegal alien from Venezuela, who was working as a New York City Council employee despite having a criminal history that includes an arrest for assault.  In January, ICE arrested Gerardo Miguel-Mora, an illegal alien from Mexico, after he had been released by New York sanctuary politicians despite having a criminal history that includes arrests for strangulation, rape, sexual assault, burglary, grand larceny, and drug possession.  In April 2025, ICE lodged a detainer for Felix Jeronimo-Rojas, an illegal alien from Mexico, after he was arrested for raping and robbing a corpse on a New York City subway. Jeronimo-Rojas was sentenced in June 2026 to five years in prison.  In addition to the crimes committed by illegal aliens in New York, the state’s sanctuary policies have had disastrous consequences in other states as well. These include:   In September, ICE arrested Simranpal Singh, an illegal alien from India, in Pennsylvania who had been issued a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) by Hochul’s New York.   In March, ICE arrested Sukhdev Singh, an illegal alien from India, after he caused a crash while driving a semi-truck that left a U.S. citizen hospitalized in critical condition in Indianapolis, Indiana. Singh had been given a CDL by Hochul’s New York.  In October 2025, ICE arrested Anmol Anmol, an illegal alien from India, in Oklahoma. Hochul’s New York had given Anmol a CDL that listed him as “No Name Given Anmol.”  In August 2023, New York City Police Department (NYPD) officers arrested Jose Antonio Ibarra, an illegal alien from Venezuela and Tren de Aragua gang member, for recklessly driving a motorcycle with a 2-year-old child who was not wearing a helmet. He was released due to New York’s sanctuary policies, and six months later, Ibarra went on to murder nursing student Laken Riley in Georgia in February 2024. Thanks to Operation Rotten Apple, which took place from July 27 to August 29, ICE arrested 2,197 illegal aliens across the state of New York, including murderers, rapists, pedophiles, drug traffickers, and violent assailants.

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