Feds say they did not intervene in Israeli official’s child sex case
The federal government said Monday that it did not intervene in the case of an Israeli government official who was arrested in a multi-agency sting operation that targeted alleged child sex predators in the Las Vegas Valley.
Tom Artiom Alexandrovich posted $10,000 in bail with no apparent conditions Aug. 7, a day after his arrest and before appearing in front of a judge, according to court records.
The 38-year-old cybersecurity official then returned home, prompting critics online to accuse the U.S. government of interceding on behalf of the State of Israel.
The U.S. State Department said Monday that Alexandrovich “did not claim diplomatic immunity and was released by a state judge pending a court date,” the agency wrote on social media. “Any claims that the U.S. government intervened are false.”
Alexandrovich and seven other suspects arrested in the early August sting operation each face a felony count of luring or attempting to lure a child with computer technology to engage in sexual conduct.
Nevada law classifies the alleged offense as a category B felony with a prison punishment between one and 10 years if convicted.
Undercover investigation
A law enforcement “decoy” pretending to be a 15-year-old girl began talking to a person with Alexandrovich’s phone number on the “Pure” dating application and then WhatsApp on Aug. 6, according to an arrest report released Monday.
Authorities were investigating internet crimes against children, police said.
The interaction turned “sexual in nature,” and police allege that the suspect agreed to meet with the decoy, take her on a date to a Strip show and bring a condom, according to the arrest report.
Alexandrovich, who said he had worked for the Israeli government for about 14 years, arrived in a rideshare at an undisclosed location, where the purported meeting was set to take place, police said.
The Jerusalem Post newspaper over the weekend described Alexandrovich as a “senior official at the Cyber Directorate in the Prime Minister’s Office” and reported that he managed substantial budgets at the agency and led teams that worked to protect critical infrastructure.
Federal agents with the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations questioned him after he agreed to waive his Miranda rights, police said.
He told the agents that he thought he had been talking to an 18-year-old woman, police said.
Alexandrovich said he was in town for the six-day Black Hat USA 2025 cybersecurity conference, which took place at the Mandalay Bay and ended Aug. 5.
Alexandrovich said he had met with National Security Agency agents during his stay, and had a meeting with the agency the next day, police said.
“Alexandrovich stated he felt the girl ‘pushed’ him to talk about bringing a condom yet could not remember how many times the girl ‘pushed’ him,” the arrest report said.
He said he was “embarrassed” for the arrest, adding that he wanted to take a polygraph test, police said. “Alexandrovich stated he was in shock and he needed to contact someone about his international flight back to Israel.”
The agents informed the Israeli consulate about the arrest, police said. Alexandrovich asked about the bail process and if he could contact his family in Israel or the nation’s embassy but wasn’t allowed to before he was taken to jail.
Police said Alexandrovich had a flight scheduled to return to Israel on Aug. 8, a day after he posted bail.
Senior Israeli official
The Jerusalem Post said Alexandrovich is an Israeli resident.
“The employee updated the directorate that during his trip to the United States, he was questioned by the U.S. authorities on matters unrelated to his work, and he returned to Israel at the planned time of return,” the agency that employs him wrote in a statement, according to the Jerusalem Post. “The directorate has not received additional details through authorized channels to date.
“Should such details be received, the directorate will act accordingly,” the statement continued. “At this stage, by joint decision, the employee has gone on leave to deal with the matter until things become clear.”
Local prosecution
The cases — investigated by local, state and federal authorities — were filed in Henderson Justice Court. The Metropolitan Police Department publicized the arrests on Friday.
Alexandrovich posted bond at the Henderson Detention Center before a probable cause review, court records show.
That same day, Justice of the Peace Stephen L. George made the probable cause determination and affirmed the bail amount, records show.
A status hearing to review the filing of the complaint was scheduled for Aug. 27, records show.
Nevada’s top federal prosecutor, Sigal Chattah, noted Monday that the Clark County district attorney’s office was prosecuting the cases.
“This important multi-agency operation targeted child sex predators who preyed upon the most vulnerable members of our communities,” Chattah said in a statement.
Bail for the eight suspects was set between $5,000 and $20,000, and most posted bond. Court dockets show that all but two had bail conditions imposed.
