RIVERSIDE, California – A federal grand jury indicted John Mathew Piecuch, 61, of  sexual exploitation offenses alleging he convinced a preteen girl to send him sexually explicit photos of herself and a younger relative. Piecuch was indicted with attempted enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity, production of child pornography, and receipt of child pornography.

          Piecuch posed as a 13-year-old boy on an online gaming platform, where he met a 12-year-old girl in late 2020, according to court documents. After moving their conversation to a text message system, Piecuch requested sexually explicit photos from the girl, who also sent sexually explicit photos of a 5-year-old relative, according to a criminal complaint filed earlier this month. The mother of the 12-year-old girl saw some of the text messages between her daughter and Piecuch on one of the girl's mobile devices, which prompted her to contact authorities, the complaint states.

If convicted of the three counts in the indictment, Piecuch would face a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison. Each of the three charges carries a mandatory minimum sentence, with the mandatory minimum sentence for production of child pornography being the longest at 15 years in prison.