Sex Offenders Indicted on Federal Child Pornography Charges
Registered Sex Offenders Indicted On Federal Child Pornography Charges
PROVIDENCE, RI – A federal grand jury today returned indictments charging two registered sex offenders living in Providence with child pornography charges.
The grand jury returned separate indictments charging Robert L. MacGregor, 55, with possession child pornography, and Michael Llorca, 47, with two counts of distribution and one count of possession of child pornography.
The indictments are announced by United States Attorney Stephen G. Dambruch; Colonel Ann C. Assumpico, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police; and Michael S. Shea, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) for New England.
According to court documents, it is alleged that in October 2017, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children provided information to the Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force that an individual, later identified by the task force as Michael Llorca, allegedly sent sexually explicit text messages and illicit images to a minor female via an online application. Subsequently, a member of the ICAC Task Force observed a computer or other device allegedly using the same IP address sharing files of suspected child pornography on a peer-to-peer file-sharing network.
On January 18, 2018, members of the ICAC Task Force executed a federal court-authorized search of Llorca’s Providence residence and seized, among other items, seven laptop computers, six smartphones, two Apple iPods and two SD cards. A forensic review of the devices is currently underway.
According to court records, Llorca, who has been detained since his arrest on January 18, is a registered sex offender, having been convicted of rape of a child in Massachusetts in August 1997.
In a separate matter, according to court documents, during a routine home visit on January 24, 2018, a United States Probation Officer allegedly observed inappropriate materials on Robert L. MacGregor’s cell phone. A subsequent forensic examination of the phone by members of the ICAC task force allegedly revealed approximately 100 images of child pornography.
MacGregor, in federal custody since his arrest by HSI agents and members of ICAC task force on February 7, 2018, is a registered sex offender currently serving lifetime federal supervised release, having been convicted of possession and distribution of child pornography in 2011. His most recent arrest occurred less than 5 months after completing an 84 month term of incarceration.
An indictment is merely an allegation and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John P. McAdams.
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