United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, announced on Mar. 10 that Thomas Alexander Brandenstein, a German national, was sentenced to 121 months in prison by Judge Lewis A. Kaplan for enticing a 15-year-old minor to engage in sexual activity and traveling across state lines to do so in 2023. Brandenstein had pleaded guilty on September 8, 2025, to one count of enticement of a minor before U.S. Magistrate Judge Valerie Figueredo.
The case highlights ongoing concerns about child exploitation and the efforts by law enforcement agencies to prevent such crimes. Authorities say that protecting minors from predatory behavior remains a top priority.
“Brandenstein twice traveled from Germany to New York to entice a minor victim—over forty years his junior—to engage in illegal sexual acts,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “Thanks to the extraordinary investigative work of our law enforcement partners at HSI and NYPD, Brandenstein was apprehended before he could prey on other innocent victims. Sexual abuse of children can cause severe trauma, often lasting into victims’ adulthood or their entire lives. This needs to stop. New Yorkers want law enforcement to do everything we can to prevent underage abuse, and we will. Today’s sentence underscores our commitment to prosecuting those who engage in predatory sexual behavior with our city’s children.”
According to court documents and statements made during proceedings, Brandenstein used internet-enabled messaging applications from March through September 2023 while in Germany to send sexually explicit communications—including images and videos—to the minor victim residing in New York. He discussed plans with his spouse and co-defendant John-Philipp Piehl-Brandenstein about traveling together from Germany to New York.
In July 2023, both men arrived in New York where they met the minor at a Manhattan hotel and engaged in illegal sexual activity that was also video recorded by Brandenstein. After returning briefly to Germany, Brandenstein maintained contact with the victim through frequent video calls involving sexually explicit conduct until he returned again in September 2023 intending further illicit encounters but was arrested upon arrival at Queens airport.
In addition to his prison term, Brandenstein was sentenced to five years of supervised release. The investigation involved Homeland Security Investigations and the New York City Police Department.
The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Civil Rights and Human Trafficking Unit within its Criminal Division.
