A former U.S. serviceman has been sentenced to 15 and a half years in federal prison for sexually exploiting a Maryland child.
Thirty-three-year-old Daniel Lara-Salazar was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Matthew Maddox and will serve lifetime supervised release following his prison term. According to his guilty plea, Lara-Salazar was stationed at Puyallup, Washington, when he began communicating with a minor girl in Maryland through Snapchat in June 2024.
Prosecutors say he coerced and enticed the girl to send sexually explicit images and videos, continuing the exploitation through July. Investigators later discovered Lara-Salazar had also used Snapchat to communicate with three other minor girls living in Texas and elsewhere and solicited sexually explicit images from them.
The case was investigated by the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations. Federal prosecutors say the case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative targeting the sexual exploitation and abuse of children.
By: Dianah Gibson
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