East Hartford Man Charged with Making Cell Phone Videos of Him Sexually Assaulting a Child

 U.S. Attorney John H. Durham, Hartford State’s Attorney Sharmese L. Walcott, Acting Special Agent in Charge David Magdycz of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and East Hartford Police Chief Scott M. Sansom today announced that SAEED MUSTAPHA MOUSSA, 30, of East Hartford, has been charged by federal criminal complaint with child exploitation offenses related to his alleged sexual assault of a minor.

Moussa appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson via videoconference.  He has been detained since his arrest on related state charges on October 27, 2020.

As alleged in court documents, in September 2020, East Hartford Police received a report that Moussa’s cell phone contained videos of Moussa engaging in sexual activity with a young child.  East Hartford Police subsequently conducted a court-authorized search of Moussa’s residence and seized Moussa’s cell phone, computer equipment and computer storage media.  Investigators also executed a search warrant on Google for the contents of Moussa’s Google Photos account.

It is alleged that Moussa’s Google Photos account contained videos of Moussa sexually assaulting a girl who was approximately eight years old at the time the videos were taken.

The complaint charges Moussa with one count of production of child pornography, which carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years, and one count of possession of child pornography, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.

U.S. Attorney Durham stressed that a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  Charges are only allegations and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

U.S. Attorney Durham thanked the Hartford State’s Attorney’s Office for its cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of this case.

This matter is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the East Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy V. Gifford.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.