Air Force member David Ibarra used online playing game Roblox to get LI girl to send him nude pictures and video, federal prosecutors say

A U.S. airman accused of using TikTok and Roblox to persuade a Long Island girl to send him nude photos and videos pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a child in federal court in Central Islip.

U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert ordered David Ibarra, an active senior airman who had been stationed at an Air Force base in Alaska, held without bail during his arraignment on Wednesday. Ibarra was detained following his arrest outside his home in Anchorage on Feb. 12, federal prosecutors said, and then transferred to the Eastern District of New York.

Ibarra admitted he had made contact with the girl and sent her payments in exchange for sexual images, prosecutors said in court papers. He told authorities he believed the girl was 12 years old.

Ibarra’s attorney, Evan Sugar, declined to discuss the case after the arraignment. Ibarra is also charged with coercion and enticement. He is scheduled to return to court on June 6.

According to court papers, Ibarra met the girl, a 9-year-old Suffolk County resident, on the social media platform TikTok in August. He later asked her to communicate with him via Roblox, a popular online gaming platform. He introduced himself as "Dave," and said he was a 13-year-old boy living in Texas.

Ibarra offered the girl money in return for sexually explicit photos and videos. Investigators who searched his phone found 17 transactions totaling $191 through Apple Pay, court papers said. The defendant repeatedly pressured the victim to send more images and gave her specific directions about which sexually explicit poses he wanted her to record.

"Can we be a little dirty before we go to sleep?" Ibarra asked during one exchange, according to prosecutors. "Pls and I’ll send money."

In January, Ibarra tried to convince someone he believed was the girl’s 15-year-old sister to help him reconnect with the victim. That person, however, was actually the girl’s mother. He sent the mother two selfies in January, the papers said.

The victim’s father notified the Suffolk County Police Department, which reported the allegations to the FBI, according to the documents. Investigators obtained a search warrant to search Ibarra’s phone, allegedly finding numerous photos and videos of the victim engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Ibarra faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted on the top count, sexual exploitation of a child, prosecutor Paul Scotti told Seybert.

"As alleged, the defendant, a 31-year-old man posing as a 13-year-old boy, manipulated a vulnerable child into producing and sending him sexually explicit images and videos of herself via text message in exchange for money," said John Durham, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

Officials said Ibarra's criminal case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative by the U.S. Justice Department started in 2006 to fight child sexual exploitation across the nation.

"The FBI is committed to finding and arresting the monsters who prey on vulnerable children, and we will continue to work with our partners to ensure these predators are off the streets and behind bars where they can no longer pose a danger to our communities," acting FBI Assistant Director in Charge Leslie Backschies said.