California Man Pleads Guilty to Attempted Sexual Exploitation of a 12-Year-Old and Distributing Child Pornography

A California man pleaded guilty today to attempted enticement and coercion of a minor and to distribution of child pornography.

According to court documents, Donald Ramirez, 40, of Salinas, California, used Snapchat to send a 12-year-old girl a photo of his genitals and repeatedly demanded the child create and send him photos of herself engaged in sexually explicit conduct he directed. Ramirez also used other social media platforms, including Telegram and Wickr, to distribute child sexual abuse material including images of another female minor whom he had communicated with on Snapchat.

Ramirez is scheduled to be sentenced on May 11, 2026 and faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, and a maximum penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department's Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian for the Northern District of California made the announcement.

The Department of Homeland Security is investigating the case.

Trial Attorney McKenzie Hightower of the Justice Department's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Neal Hong for the Northern District of California are prosecuting the case.

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.