Brandon Kern of Bayport, Stephen Cipkin of Smithtown charged with child pornography

Two Long Island men who used social media to find victims have been indicted on federal child pornography charges following separate interstate investigations into allegations they engaged in sexually explicit contact with minors, federal officials announced this week.

One of the men worked as a tutor in Suffolk County until recently, according to the FBI.

Brandon Kern, 29, of Bayport was arraigned Wednesday in federal court in Central Islip on five counts of sexual exploitation of minors and possession of child pornography. Already convicted in a child sex case in Ohio, he was remanded by Magistrate Judge Lee Dunst.

“Posing as a teen on Snapchat, [Kern] allegedly contacted at least six girls, some as young as 12 years old, and coerced them into sending him sexually explicit photos and videos, and when these girls attempted to block further contact with him, he threatened to expose and humiliate them to family and friends,” United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace said in a statement.

Prosecutors said between December 2020 and October 2021, Kern posed as a teenager and convinced underage girls to send him sexually explicit photographs and videos. He was arrested in October 2021 in North Olmstead, Ohio, after allegedly traveling there from Long Island to have sex with a 14-year-old girl, federal and local authorities in Ohio said.

After the teen refused to meet with Kern, he was arrested leaving a hotel room with condoms, rope and lubricant, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a news release.

An FBI investigation revealed Kern had contacted additional minors between the ages of 12 and 15 through social media and he was indicted on the new charges Nov. 14, court records show.

Kern pleaded guilty to enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity and was sentenced to 10½ years in federal prison in the Ohio case. His New York case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Samantha Alessi of the Long Island Criminal Division.

The FBI said it has identified several Snapchat accounts through which Kern  communicated with potential victims using the handles “bsublime” and “punkygreen472.” Parents are urged to call the FBI at 212-384-1000 if they believe their child had contact with Kern, investigators said.

Attorney information for Kern was not immediately available.

Similar charges in Louisiana

Stephen Cipkin, 37, of Smithtown was charged in a five-count indictment in the Western District Court of Louisiana last month on charges of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual activity, enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, and production, possession and receipt of child pornography.

The indictment alleges that between January and April 2022, Cipkin contacted a female under the age of 18 in Louisiana to engage in sexual activity and produced video images of their encounters, which he then distributed. In April 2022, Cipkin traveled to meet the teen in person, the indictment alleges.

On Wednesday, the FBI announced it was looking to identify other potential victims of Cipkin, who the agency said worked as a tutor in Suffolk County between 2020 and 2023. Investigators said Cipkin may have engaged with minors on Snapchat, Pinterest, YesIChat, Y99 and Instagram under the usernames “sac8635,” “ArabellaC.,” “Human no-more,” “numb little bug,” “Swiffer1,” “@onlygoodguy,” and “Ur_Perfect_Daddy.”

Magistrate Judge Joseph H. L. Perez-Montes ordered Cipkin held without bail at a detention hearing in District Court in Alexandria, Louisiana, Nov. 2. His attorney, Julie Tizzard of New Orleans, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The FBI has set up a special email for information that could assist the investigation at CipkinVictim@fbi.gov.

By Grant Parpan

grant.parpan@newsday.com@GrantParpan

Grant Parpan covers Suffolk County courts and federal courts for Newsday. A Long Island native, he joined Newsday in 2022.