A nanny from California is facing trial for allegedly abusing an 8-month-old baby girl and posting images of the victim online — all at the direction of a man who received the photos via social media, authorities say.
Michelle Hidalgo, 28, is accused of abusing the girl after the man asked her to do “worse and worse” things to the infant and then record them, police said in court records obtained by the East Bay Times .
The Antioch resident was initially charged last month with seven counts of allegedly “producing and distributing child pornography,” the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s office said in a Sept. 26 news release.
Now, she faces three more charges of child molestation abuse victim under 10 and one count of using a minor for sexual acts, according to charging documents filed last week.
A search warrant served on Hidalgo’s home last month led authorities to seize equipment used in the case, prosecutors said.
Hidalgo, who was a part-time nanny for the victim’s family, reportedly admitted to sharing the images and told an investigator it was a “stupid” mistake she only made once, according to records reviewed by the East Bay Times .
When they searched her online account, investigators discovered that Hidalgo was allegedly chatting with a man who was asking for more indecent photos of the infant, the local news agency reported, citing records.
The babysitter also allegedly said she sexually abused the child through oral sex, according to the affidavit also reported by KTVU. Hidalgo insisted she did not abuse the infant when confronted by detectives before the latest charges were filed, the station reported.
But investigators found evidence that was a lie when police searched her iCloud account, prosecutors reportedly claim.
Officials were first alerted to the alleged abuse by a social media company on Sept. 21 that sexually explicit material depicting a young child was being shared on the platform, the prosecutor’s office said.
The victim’s parents said they connected with Hidalgo through Care.com and did not know her before hiring her, police said, according to the East Bay Times.
He could face up to 60 years in prison if convicted and remains behind bars after bail was set at $2.7 million.
Source: News Beast
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