A California inmate serving time for lewd acts against a child has been indicted on new federal charges alleging he continued to exploit the same victim while incarcerated, authorities said.

Nathaniel Ray Diaz, 21, of Greenfield, was arraigned Monday after a federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment charging him with sexual exploitation of a minor, attempted receipt of child pornography, and obstruction of justice, Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith announced.

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According to court documents, Diaz was serving a three-year sentence at Avenal State Prison in Kings County for committing lewd acts against a 12-year-old and making criminal threats with a gun.

Between July 5 and Nov. 25, 2024, he allegedly used prison phones, a state-issued tablet, and monitored ViaPath messaging equipment to repeatedly contact the same victim.

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Although Diaz was under a 10-year no-contact order with the minor, prosecutors said he placed thousands of calls and directed the victim to produce and send sexually explicit images.

When Diaz became aware that law enforcement had been alerted, he allegedly instructed others to delete evidence of the communications.

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If convicted, Diaz faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison and up to 50 years for the sexual exploitation charge, prosecutors said.

He also faces a minimum of 15 years and up to 40 years for the attempted receipt charge, and up to 20 years for obstruction of justice. Each count carries a potential fine of up to $250,000.

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