Defendant Had Two Prior New York State Convictions for Sexually Assaulting Children
Joseph Grunwald was sentenced by United States District Judge Nina R. Morrison to 30 years’ imprisonment for coercing and enticing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct, and receiving child pornography. The sentencing was held on October 22, 2026. Grunwald pleaded guilty to a three-count superseding information in August 2026. Grunwald was a registered sex offender in New York State when he committed the federal crimes of conviction.
Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and James C. Barnacle, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the sentence.
“The defendant has demonstrated that he poses a grave danger to children. Today’s sentence was necessary to protect the community from this recidivist menace for decades,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. “Notably, the defendant’s prior New York State sentences for sexually assaulting minors – in each case, he received probation – failed to deter him.”
“While nothing can undo the harm suffered by the victims, this significant sentence ensures Joseph Grunwald, a convicted sex offender, will spend the next three decades unable to victimize additional children. The FBI/NYPD Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force works day in and day out to hold accountable those who prey on children. Individuals who choose to target the most vulnerable should take note: justice will find you,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Barnacle.
As set forth in court filings, between March 2023 and December 2023, Grunwald communicated over the internet and through social media with two children, John Doe-1, a 14-year-old boy, and John Doe-2, another minor boy, soliciting them both for sexually explicit videos and images. Grunwald first contacted John Doe-1 on the messaging app Telegram, confirmed that the victim was a minor, and solicited a sexually explicit picture from him. Grunwald was 31 years old at the time. John Doe-1 later learned that the defendant had sent the sexually explicit picture, without the victim’s knowledge, to a group chat. In June 2023, Grunwald began threatening the victim. For example, on June 26, the defendant threatened: “You’re still in trouble and remember what I said yesterday. Those boys told me something about you.” The following day, on June 27, the defendant threatened John Doe-1 again after chasing him though the boy’s synagogue: “I am going to call your mother. I have her cell phone number. Good luck. I’m going to tell her everything.”
Grunwald also solicited sexually explicit pictures from John Doe-2, exchanging thousands of messages with the victim on Instagram. Grunwald confirmed John Doe-2 was a minor, but later falsely told John Doe-2 that Grunwald was 18-years-old. Law enforcement also seized multiple electronic devices from Grunwald containing additional child pornography in the form of pictures and videos of other minors.
Grunwald was previously convicted in 2019 of sexually abusing a 7-year-old girl in a synagogue, and was sentenced to 10 years’ probation. While the charges in that case were still pending, Grunwald sexually abused a 13-year-old boy in exchange for a cell phone and the use of the defendant’s debit card. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor sexual abuse and was sentenced to three years’ probation.
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices, 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. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
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