US Airman Arrested for Exploiting Minor on Social Media
David Ibarra, a U.S. airman aged 31, has been arrested, accused of manipulating a 9-year-old girl to send explicit images of herself. Allegedly, Ibarra posed as a 13-year-old boy and engaged the young girl through popular social media platforms TikTok and Roblox. He initially approached the child on TikTok before urging her to switch their interactions to Roblox, under the false impression that he was a teenager residing in Texas.
Ibarra reportedly initiated communication with the victim in August. The girl, residing in the suburban area of Long Island, east of New York City, was led to believe the man she was talking to was a 13-year-old boy.
Over time, Ibarra managed to transition their conversations from Roblox to her personal phone. Gradually, he convinced the minor to produce scandalous material by promising her payment through the digital platform, Apple Pay.
Ibarra allegedly compensated the young girl a total of $191 through seventeen different transactions. This evidence was shared by the state prosecutors who are currently handling the case.
The situation was unearthed when the girl’s mother discovered the incriminating messages on her daughter’s phone.
The mother, in an attempt to obtain further evidence about the man involved in preying on her daughter, impersonated an older sibling and started a conversation with Ibarra from her own mobile device.
During the course of their conversation, unaware of who was actually on the other side, Ibarra shared a selfie revealing his face, enabling the mother to gather significant details about him.
Authorities used the details and digital footprints such as the phone number based in El Paso, Texas, to probe deeper into the case and succeeded in identifying Ibarra. Furthermore, a significant amount of information was obtained from Ibarra’s iCloud account.
Once captured for questioning, Ibarra confessed to compensating the victim for the explicit content. Although he initially claimed he believed the child victim was 12, the prosecution insists the girl was actually 9 years old at the time of the incident.
Surprisingly, Ibarra admitted to similar exploitations involving other young girls, with an additional victim identified in New Jersey.
Subsequent to his arrest in February in Anchorage, Alaska, while serving active duty in the Air Force, he was brought before a federal court in New York for arraignment. Ibarra was serving as an air transportation specialist Senior Airman, primarily tasked with managing cargo.
Charges including sexual exploitation of a minor were leveled against Ibarra, and a judge commanded he be held in custody until the trial gets underway.
Since his arrest, Ibarra has been in a non-paid status with the Air Force. At the time of writing, it’s unclear what further disciplinary actions he could encounter from the military.