Published March 02, 2022

Enlisted Sailor Based in Louisiana Faces the Possibility of a 100+ Year Sentence After Being Charged with Sex Crimes Involving Minors

An enlisted sailor based in Louisiana has been charged with producing files depicting the sexual victimization of children and other sex crimes. He faces the possibility of a 100+ year prison sentence if convicted.

Louisiana – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Biagio William Ambrosino, age 19, originally from Queens, NY, who is now an enlisted sailor stationed in Belle Chasse, Louisiana, was charged by a federal grand jury sitting in the Eastern District of Louisiana in a five-count indictment with producing images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of a female born in August 2004 (Count 1), and a male born in August 2005 (Count 2), in violation of 18 U.S.C. ‘ 2251(a), transmitting interstate threats to a sixteen-year-old female for the purpose of extorting a thing of value, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 875(b) (Count 3), transmitting interstate threats to an adult female for the purpose of extorting a thing of value, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 875(d) (Count 4), and possessing sexually explicit depictions of children under the age of twelve years old, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2252(a)(4)(B) (Count 5).

Specifically, Ambrosino is alleged to have extorted his victims into sending him additional sexually explicit depictions by threatening to injure any person and “expose” victims by sending prior depictions to family members. Ambrosino is alleged to have committed the offenses between August 2020 and January 19, 2022. Ambrosino was charged on February 25, 2022; the indictment was unsealed after he was taken into custody on February 28, 2022.

Ambrosino faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of fifteen years and a maximum term of imprisonment of thirty years for Counts 1 and 2, a maximum term of imprisonment of twenty years for Counts 3 and 5, and a maximum term of imprisonment of two years for Count 4. For counts 1, 2, and 5, Ambrosino faces up to a lifetime of supervised release. For counts 3-4, he faces up to three years in prison and one year in jail, respectively. Ambrosino faces a fine of up to $250,000 and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100 for each count.

U. S. Attorney Evans reiterated that an indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Project Safe Childhood, led by US Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. To learn more about Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

U.S. Attorney Evans praised the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) for its work in investigating this case, which was assisted by the New York Police Department. The prosecution is led by Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsberg.

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