Miami man sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison for enticing a minor to engage in sexual conduct

COCOA BEACH, Fla. - Eric Albert Seiden, 45, of Miami, was sentenced Thursday to 11 years and three months in federal prison and 20 years of supervised release for using the Internet to entice a minor under the age of 18 to engage in sexual activity. Seiden was also ordered to pay $41,600 to the minor male victim of his crime, which he has paid in full, and to pay a fine in the amount of $250,000.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Brevard County Sheriff's Office.
"This case reveals a disturbing truth that some adults will go to great lengths to sexually exploit children," said Susan McCormick, special agent in charge of ICE HSI in Tampa, Fla. "His sentencing should serve as a warning to other would-be child predators. Identifying and investigating those who victimize children is one of the most important responsibilities we have, and that is why ICE will continue working aggressively with our state, local and federal partners on these types of cases."
Seiden pleaded guilty on Aug. 18 to beginning an online relationship in September 2008 with a minor male victim, who was less than 16-years-old. The online contacts included conversations over the Internet regarding sex and meeting in person. In those conversations, Seiden often requested the victim to send images of them to him.
Seiden sent images to the minor of himself, including an image of his erect penis after ejaculation that Seiden sent to him on Feb. 1, 2009. In early June 2009, the minor advised Seiden via the Internet that his parents were going to be out of town. Seiden suggested that they meet.
On June 19, 2009, the minor told Seiden that he would meet with him. Seiden drove from South Florida and checked in at a Hampton Inn Hotel in Brevard County.
On June 20, 2009, Seiden picked him up near his residence, and they drove to the Hampton Inn. While in the room, Seiden and the minor engaged in sexual conduct.
This case was part of Operation Predator, a nationwide ICE initiative to identify, investigate, and arrest those who prey on children, including human traffickers, international sex tourists, Internet pornographers, and foreign-national predators whose crimes make them deportable. ICE encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-347-2423. This hotline is staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlos A. Perez.

ICE arrests 54 previously deported aliens with prior criminal convictions in the New York City area

NEW YORK - This week, the largest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation of its kind targeting previously deported criminal aliens was carried out all over the greater New York City area. Dubbed Operation RAPID, 54 previously deported aliens with criminal records were arrested on federal arrest warrants during a four-day targeted enforcement operation.
Eighty officers and agents from ICE’s Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) field office in New York City, assisted by 70 additional special agents and law enforcement officers from ICE’s Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Marshals Service’s New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force (RFTF), participated in the operation.
Operation RAPID (Re-enter, Arrest, Prosecute, Incarcerate, Deport), is an operation designed to target, locate and arrest previously deported criminal aliens that have subsequently returned to the United States without authorization from the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security or the Attorney General of the United States.
All 54 individuals arrested on the federal arrest warrants have been remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.




The U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York will be handling the prosecutions.
ERO officers arrested two additional foreign nationals during the operation. Both were taken into ICE custody and will be processed administratively for removal from the United States. Due to their manner of entry and their criminal histories, both are subject to immediate removal from the United States.
"This enforcement action underscores ICE's commitment to strategic, sensible immigration enforcement that enhances public safety," said ICE Director John Morton. "ICE will continue to target, arrest, and remove those who come to this country to pursue a life of crime rather than the American dream."
"These arrests vividly show how cooperation among law enforcement agencies at the federal, state and local levels produces positive results," said Lenny DePaul, Commanding Officer, U.S. Marshals Service’s New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force "We've arrested 51 previously deported criminal aliens who will now have to face justice on the crimes they've committed, and for that, our streets are safer."
Team members made arrests in the following New York counties: Bronx, Kings, New York, Orange, Queens, Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester. Individuals arrested were nationals of Belize, the Bahamas, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, and St. Kitts.
Those arrested include:
- A 44-year-old from the Dominican Republic previously convicted of fraud, and receiving stolen property. At the time of the arrest, he was found to be in possession of two firearms. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has accepted prosecution for violation of Title 18, United States Code (USC), Section 922(g)(1) and Title18 USC Section 922(g)(5), felon in possession of a firearm and illegal alien in possession of a firearm, respectively.
- A 39-year-old Dominican Republic national previously convicted of multiple counts of sexual assault involving a child and of sexual activity with a minor, among other crimes.



- A 31-year-old from the Bahamas, previously convicted of robbery and grand theft motor vehicle, was also arrested. At the time of arrest, ERO officers encountered his 39-year-old brother and determined the he had also been previously deported from the United States following a conviction in Florida for aggravated assault with a weapon. He was also arrested.
This week’s special enforcement action was a joint initiative between the ICE National Fugitive Operations Program (NFOP) and the ICE Criminal Alien Program’s Violent Criminal Alien Section (VCAS). The NFOP is responsible for locating, arresting and removing at-large criminal aliens and immigration fugitives - aliens who have ignored final orders of deportation handed down by the nation's immigration courts. VCAS screens recidivist criminal aliens encountered to deter and reduce future recidivism rates of violent criminal aliens by seeking criminal prosecution. In coordination with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the VCAS prioritizes federal criminal prosecution of egregious recidivist criminal aliens for felony violations. Illegal re-entry after deportation is currently the most prosecuted federal offense nationwide.
ICE’s Fugitive Operations Program is just one facet of the Department of Homeland Security’s broader strategy to heighten the federal government's effectiveness at identifying and removing dangerous criminal aliens from the United States. Other initiatives that figure prominently in this effort are the Criminal Alien Program of which VCAS is a major component, Secure Communities and the agency's partnerships with state and local law enforcement agencies under 287(g).