Arthur Picanco, 43, of Bradford, Massachusetts, was sentenced on Mar. 9 to seven years in federal prison and five years of supervised release after pleading guilty to traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, according to U.S. Attorney Erin Creegan.
The case highlights ongoing efforts by law enforcement agencies to combat child exploitation and abuse. Authorities say that individuals who travel across state lines with the intention of exploiting children will be prosecuted and held accountable.
“Individuals who travel across state lines to exploit children in New Hampshire will be found, prosecuted, and held accountable,” Creegan said. “The defendant deliberately traveled from Massachusetts to New Hampshire intending to purchase sex from someone he believed to be a minor. Today’s significant sentence recognizes the seriousness of his conduct.”
Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol for Homeland Security Investigations in New England said, “Picanco actively chose to pursue a child. He believed he was chatting with a trafficker offering him a chance to assault a child for a fee and he made deliberate choices to make it happen. He agreed on a price, he drove to New Hampshire, and he arrived with cash in hand. Now, after today’s sentencing, he’ll serve serious federal prison time.” Krol added that undercover operations are effective at apprehending child predators before they can harm real children.
According to court documents, on November 14, 2024, law enforcement agents conducted an undercover operation by posting an advertisement on a website known for commercial sex ads featuring images appearing as two minor females. Picanco responded and arranged payment for sex with someone he believed was a 14-year-old girl. After receiving instructions from an undercover agent posing as the trafficker, Picanco traveled from Massachusetts to Manchester, New Hampshire where police arrested him at the hotel with cash and a condom.
Homeland Security Investigations led the investigation with assistance from the Manchester Police Department, the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office, and the New Hampshire Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anna Krasinski Matthew Vicinanzo and Alex Chen prosecuted the case.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood—a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006—to address child sexual exploitation through coordinated federal, state, and local resources.
