Content warning: This article describes child sexual abuse. Please take care while reading. In a troubling case unfolding in Connecticut, 44-year-old Alyson Cranick of Columbia has pleaded guilty to federal charges of coercion and enticement of a minor, admitting that she manipulated an 11-year-old boy into leaving his home after midnight to meet with her. She then sexually abused the boy. In her plea entered on November 18, 2025, Cranick admitted to federal prosecutors that she coerced the minor to engage in sexual activity. According to the U. S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut, Cranick, a former educational paraprofessional, communicated with the boy over several months during the summer and fall of 2022, first through text messages and Snapchat and later using Discord. She exchanged more than 4, 700 messages with him between July and October of that year. Highlighting grooming behavior, investigators allege Cranick gave the child what she portrayed as a “friendship bracelet,” bearing an acronym she claimed meant “best friends for life with benefits.” Cranick instructed the boy to keep the bracelet secret and to lie if questioned about its meaning. Reports say in police interviews, Cranick downplayed the inappropriate nature of her contact with the boy. The late-night abuse Court documents indicate that on multiple occasions, Cranick induced the boy to sneak out of his house after midnight and meet her in remote locations, including wooded areas and school grounds. The meetings reportedly occurred at least 14 times. Cranick previously worked as an administrative assistant at a local school district. Once her alleged misconduct came under investigation, the district dismissed her from the position. The victim’s family reportedly discovered the Discord exchanges and cooperated with authorities. The child subsequently cut off communication and worked with investigators to end the contact. The FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force and the Connecticut State Police Eastern District Major Crime Unit investigated the case. Authorities originally arrested Cranick on related state charges on November 14, 2023. Police detained her again on November 28, 2023. Her federal charges came in July 2024. After her initial arrest on state charges, authorities arrested Cranick again after contacting a 13-year-old girl on Snapchat, violating the conditions of her release, according to CT Insider. Her sentencing is scheduled for February 12, 2026, where she faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a potential sentence of life imprisonment. After Cranick’s most recent arrest, Columbia Public Schools released a statement which read, “Clearly, any allegation of inappropriate contact with minors is disturbing and causes concerns about the safety of the children in our school community. Columbia community members should be reassured that the safety of children is the district’s foremost concern,” according to local news outlet WVIT.
https://wegotthiscovered.com/true-crime/connecticut-mom-gives-11yo-explicit-friendship-bracelet-then-she-coerces-him-into-meeting-after-midnight/