FARGO - U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on Dec. 3, 2012, John Robert Ehlen, 30, of Fargo, N.D., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Ralph R. Erickson to one count of receipt of materials involving the sexual exploitation of minors and three counts of possession of materials involving the sexual exploitation of minors.

This case came to the attention of law enforcement after officers assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC) discovered that Ehlen had been offering files of child pornography on a P2P network. ICAC officers obtained and executed a search warrant for Ehlen’s residence located in Fargo, N.D.

During the search warrant execution, officers seized various electronic media that eventually was forensically examined by a North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation special agent. The examination of such media revealed more than 200,000 images and 500 videos depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Some of the images depict children as young as three and four years of age.

The charge of receipt of materials involving the sexual exploitation of minors carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment with a minimum mandatory five years in prison. The charges of possession of materials involving the sexual exploitation of minors each carry a statutory maximum sentence of ten year’s imprisonment.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Fargo Police Department.

Sentencing for Ehlen has been scheduled for Feb. 20, 2013, in U.S. District Court in Fargo, N.D., at 9 a.m.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Klemetsrud Puhl is prosecuting the case.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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