San Diego, California - Kevin Brito of Imperial Beach was sentenced in federal court Wednesday to 15 years in prison for deceiving girls as young as 10 into making and sending him sexually explicit photos and videos of themselves.
Brito pleaded guilty on April 19, 2021 to two counts of Enticement of a Minor, admitting that he systematically targeted young girls on social media by reaching out to them and pretending to be a 12- to 14-year-old boy or girl. This included messaging with over 200 minor females online.
Brito tricked many of the young girls into thinking he was their boyfriend and then coerced them into sending him sexually graphic photos and videos. Brito told his victims to make and send more sexually explicit material and directed exactly what he wanted them to do in the material. When his victims tried to refuse, he told them that if they didn’t do what he said, he would send all the explicit material to their friends and families. At times, he followed through on those threats. He told his victims that each was his “sex slave.”
When interviewed by FBI agents, Brito admitted to communicating with one of the minor victims, receiving nude images of her, and threatening her so he could get more images. He also admitted that he knew she was 10 years old and engaged in similar sexually explicit chats with other young girls. Further, Brito said that he saved some of the files he received from the girls and sent them out to other random people.
“These young girls have been traumatized by the despicable actions of this predator,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “We will do everything legally possible to achieve justice for children who are sexually exploited.” Grossman thanked prosecutors Andrew Sherwood and Mandy Griffith and the FBI agents for their excellent work on this case.
“Unfortunately, cases such as this involving an adult coercing young girls to create and send sexually explicit images are on the rise. The defendant victimized hundreds of minors from behind his computer screen believing he was invisible to law enforcement,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Suzanne Turner. “The FBI will continue its exhaustive work of rooting out those who prey on the most vulnerable of victims online. This case is another example of the great collaborative work among law enforcement agencies to hold criminals accountable. I would like to specifically thank local law enforcement for identifying the subject and referring him to the FBI to enable us to put an end to the criminal conduct of this serial child predator.”
Project Safe Childhood (PSC) is a nationwide federal initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (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. In the Southern District of California, the PSC Coordinator is assigned to the Violent Crimes & Human Trafficking Section.
DEFENDANT Criminal Case No. 21-CR-01479-DMS
Kevin Brito Age: 22, Imperial Beach, CA
SUMMARY OF CHARGE
Enticement of a Minor – Title 18, U.S.C., Section 2422(b)
Maximum penalty: Life in Prison; $250,000 fine
INVESTIGATING AGENCY
Federal Bureau of Investigation
