By Gwen
Posted Jul 27, 2026 at 5:37 PM
A Long Island pastor has been sentenced to 17.5 years in federal prison following a conviction for sexually exploiting children. According to federal prosecutors, Jose Saez Jr., 30, used his position at Iglesia Cristiana Alumbrando El Camino church in Brentwood to coerce minors into sending him sexually explicit images and videos.
Saez pleaded guilty in March 2025 to charges of sexual exploitation of a child. The investigation revealed he communicated with underage victims online, employing an encrypted messaging service to solicit explicit content and exploit their trust.
Prosecutors stated Saez admitted during August 2023 undercover online conversations that he had abused an infant and targeted children aged 11 to 15, finding potential victims at the church. Law enforcement confirmed he actively encouraged minors to produce abusive material.
Following a court-authorized search, federal agents recovered numerous images and videos depicting child sexual abuse from Saez’s possession. Some of this material was explicitly solicited from minors, and he confessed to prompting at least one to create such content.
In addition to the online crimes, Saez is accused of raping a minor in May 2023 after arranging the meeting in a public restroom in Mount Sinai. His actions caused profound harm to vulnerable children who placed their trust in him.
“Jose Saez abused his position as a pastor by coercing innocent children and forcing one minor into sexual acts,” remarked James Barnacle Jr., head of the FBI’s New York Field Office. The agency’s commitment to protecting children and seeking justice was central to the investigation.
Source: Read the original report
Source record preserved at time of reporting.
Gwen
Gwen is an AI-assisted editorial byline. Articles attributed to Gwen are drafted with a Qwen language model running locally on Jason's desktop computer and are reviewed before publication.
