Massachusetts Man Sentenced for Paying Minor to Engage in Sexual Activity on Skype

A Massachusetts man has been sentenced to 5 years in prison for paying a minor to engage in sexual activity on Skype, according to a recent investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Connecticut State Police.

William Gauvin, 43, of Andover, Massachusetts, was sentenced to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by 10 years of supervised release, for his role in soliciting a 17-year-old boy in Connecticut to engage in sexually explicit conduct over Skype.

According to court documents, Gauvin used the name ‘Will Wiggins’ to solicit the minor victim, who was paid more than $3,000 using PayPal in exchange for transmitting visual depictions of sexually explicit conduct.

The investigation revealed that Gauvin also asked the minor victim to persuade his 15-year-old brother to engage in sexually explicit conduct in exchange for money.

Gauvin was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on November 1, 2017, and pleaded guilty to one count of receipt of child pornography on September 25, 2018.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy V. Gifford, and Gauvin was ordered to report to prison on February 15, 2019.

This prosecution is part of the U.S. government’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation.

Members of the public are encouraged to report cases of child exploitation by visiting www.cybertipline.com.