A Mexican national pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to charges of transferring obscene material to a minor and coercion and enticement of a minor, after admitting to sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl and sending her explicit images on Instagram.
According to court records, Giovanni Falcon, 41, communicated with the victim through Instagram between January 1, 2024, and August 12, 2024. During July and August of that year, Falcon sent images of his genitals to the minor. Authorities said he also engaged in sexual contact with the victim on multiple occasions.
The case came to light on August 13, 2024, when the victim’s father contacted the St. Ann Police Department after finding explicit messages on his daughter’s phone. Falcon was arrested by St. Ann police the next day and admitted to sexually abusing the victim.
At sentencing, scheduled for January 27, 2026, the U.S. Attorney’s office will seek a prison term of 216 months for Falcon. He is not legally present in the United States and will be deported after completing his sentence.
The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations along with the St. Ann Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jillian Anderson is prosecuting the case.
“This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice,” according to information from prosecutors. “Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.” Additional details about Project Safe Childhood are available at www.justice.gov/psc.
