One man pleads guilty, another gets prison in child sex cases
A Saugerties man pleaded guilty to conduct with a child and another man was sentenced to a prison term for promoting child prostitution in separate cases Thursday in Ulster County Court, according to Ulster County District Attorney Holley Carnright.
Jeffrey C. Brown, 54, of 227 Partition St., Saugerties, pleaded guilty before Ulster County Judge Donald A. Williams to course of sexual conduct against a child, a felony. Brown admitted that between Sept. 1, 2014, and Dec. 29, 2014, he engaged in at least two acts of sexual conduct,including at least one act of sexual intercourse, oral sexual conduct or anal sexual conduct with a child who was less then 13 years old, Carnright said.
An investigation by the Ulster County Family and Child Advocacy Center led to Brown’s arrest on Aug. 25, 2016.
“This man stole the trust and innocence of a child, which cannot be replaced,” Carnright said in a press release. “It took great courage for this child to come forward and expose this man for what he is, a pedophile.”
Brown is scheduled to appear before Williams for sentencing on April 24.
In the other case, Gregory C. Williams, 39, who last resided at the Capri Motel in Port Ewen but previously lived in Kingston, was sentenced Thursday by Williams to 2 1/3 to 7 years in state prison, the maximum sentence permitted by law, on his conviction for promoting prostitution, a felony.
On Dec. 15, Williams admitted that on or about April 10, 2016, he advanced or profited from prostitution of a child under 19, Carnright said.
Williams was arrested on Nov. 3, 2016, and was charged with promoting prostitution, disseminating indecent material to a minor and offering a false instrument for filing following a joint investigation by the Ulster County Family and Child Advocacy Center and the Kingston Police Department. Authorities determined that Williams was prostituting a 16-yearold, Carnright said.
His conviction was the first in Ulster County for child trafficking since the county Department of Social Services was selected to receive funds under the Safe Harbour Program run the by state Office for Family and Child Services, Carnright said.
Carnright cited the importance of the program in “shining a spotlight” on a criminal activity that is often overlooked.
Traffickers, including Williams, use various forms of manipulation to get vulnerable children into “the life,” as it is commonly called, and to keep them from leaving or reporting to law enforcement, Carnright said.
“This manipulation can be physical abuse but also commonly includes promises of love, introducing a young adolescent to a lifestyle they could otherwise not afford and getting victims addicted to drugs, which force the victim to continue participating in prostitution to support their habit,” Carnright said.