Fugitive charged in California child sex crimes investigation – NBC Los Angeles

A 47-year-old man who went by the online name “ChrisLewd” was returned to Los Angeles on Monday to face federal charges after he was arrested in Arizona earlier this month as part of an investigation by the Ventura County Child Exploitation Task Force.

Christopher Michael Loza was charged in the indictment filed in United States District Court in Los Angeles with attempted enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity and possession of child abuse material. The suspect was returned to Los Angeles on Monday for his initial court appearance following his Aug. 2 arrest in Phoenix, where authorities said he fled after failing to appear for a arraignment in the case.

The two-count indictment, filed in January 2024, details an undercover operation in which Loza is accused of contacting someone in an online chat room who he thought was a 15-year-old girl, according to an FBI news release. That person was actually an undercover agent.

Loza, who was living in Winnetka at the time, indicated he wanted to “engage in sexual activity,” the FBI said. In a text message, he asked the person if he could come to her house and if he should bring condoms, the complaint said. Loza drove to a park in Camarillo to meet the minor and had a flash drive with child pornography, the complaint said.

Loza was originally arrested on state charges filed in August 2023 in Ventura County, then released on bail. He failed to appear for his arraignment on charges of communicating with a minor with intent to commit sexual acts and arranging to meet a child for sexual acts.

On August 2, he was found by Phoenix police officers and, after discovering that there was an outstanding warrant for his arrest, they took him into custody.

A trial date has been set for October 7. If found guilty on all charges in the indictment, Loza faces a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison.