Man Charged In Hartford Child Exploitation Sting: Police

HARTFORD, CT — A Willimantic man was taken into custody this week after police said he arranged to meet someone he believed was an underage girl for sex in exchange for money.

The arrest followed an undercover operation conducted on Wednesday, July 8, by the Hartford Police Department's Special Investigations Division Child Exploitation Unit in partnership with the FBI Crimes Against Children/Human Trafficking Task Force.

Police identified the suspect as Alexander Cruz, 58, of Willimantic.

Cruz was transported to the Hartford Police Detention Division, where he was processed and held on a $500,000 bond.

He is charged with:

• Criminal Attempt – Sexual Contact with a Minor
• Criminal Attempt – Commercial Sexual Abuse of a Minor

Hartford police said the suspect communicated online with an undercover FBI agent posing as an underage female.

During the conversations, investigators allege the suspect arranged to meet the purported juvenile at a predetermined location to engage in sexual activity in exchange for money.

When the suspect arrived at the agreed-upon meeting location, Hartford police detectives assigned to the Special Investigations Division arrested him with assistance from the department's South Community Service Officers.

The investigation remains ongoing.

Police emphasized that the case stemmed from an undercover operation and that no actual child was involved in the communications or meeting.