Federal investigators say a 29 year old Oakland County man is now facing serious charges after Homeland Security uncovered disturbing content during an airport inspection.
According to a federal report, Brandon John Cifani was stopped at Detroit Metro Airport during a secondary inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Officers say they found suspected child pornography on his iPhone. That discovery triggered Homeland Security Investigations to dig deeper.
Agents say they uncovered multiple explicit videos of minors in his phone’s recently deleted folder, many believed to have been captured through screen recordings on video chat platforms. Investigators allege Cifani posed as a teenage boy named “Brody” to communicate with underage girls, offering gifts and manipulating them into sending explicit images.
Court documents outline one case where Cifani is accused of targeting a 12 year old girl, trying to coerce her into performing sexual acts online.
Cifani is charged federally with sexual exploitation of children, receipt and distribution of child pornography, possession of child pornography, and coercion and enticement of a minor.
The report also highlights other prior allegations tied to Cifani, including posing as a father to lure a babysitter.
Federal prosecutors say the investigation is ongoing, and additional victims may be identified.
