Anthony Pangallo.

By Michael Mashburn From Daily Voice

A convicted sex offender formally confessed to coercing young girls on Long Island into sending sexually explicit content.

Anthony Pangallo, 41, of Rego Park, Queens, pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a child in Central Islip federal court on Friday, Aug. 22.

Pangallo admitted during the hearing that he solicited and received explicit images from four victims, a 12-year-old and three 13-year-old girls, all from Long Island, according to the US Attorney’s Office.

While pretending to be a teenager, he lured preteen girls into online “relationships” and then pressured them to share sexual content,prosecutors said.

US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. called Pangallo’s conduct “especially abhorrent because, despite being a registered sex offender following a prior state conviction, he continued to target multiple young victims.”

Pangallo was previously convicted of child sex crimes in Fairfield County, Connecticut, after attempting to blackmail a 15-year-old girl into sending him sexually explicit content.

At the time, Pangallo was already registered as a sex offender due to a 2009 conviction in Atlantic City for sexually assaulting a minor.

Pangallo faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison and could be sentenced to as much as 50 years.

The case was brought under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide Justice Department program targeting child exploitation and abuse.