Defendant Sentenced For Sexual Abuse on Lake Powell In 2002

        PHOENIX – Yesterday, Blain Arno Pannell, 44, of Taylorsville, Utah, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Susan R. Bolton to 30 months’ imprisonment and required to register as a sex offender.  Pannell previously pleaded guilty to one count of sexual abuse.

        “Today’s outcome is a testament to the dedicated work of the National Park Service in diligently investigating a pattern of misconduct that had occurred many years earlier,” said U.S. Attorney John S. Leonardo.  “The conviction and sentence should help bring some measure of justice to the victims.”

         The evidence presented at sentencing indicated that, beginning around 2002, the defendant engaged in a sexual relationship with his then 16-year-old niece.  On one occasion in June 2002, the defendant took his niece and a 17-year-old nephew out on his boat on Lake Powell, provided them with alcohol and marijuana, and then engaged in sexual contact with both of them.  The matter was not reported to law enforcement until 2010.

         The investigation in this case was conducted by the National Park Service, Investigative Services Branch.  The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Patrick Schneider and Dimitra Sampson. 

CASE NUMBER:           CR-14-08158-SRB        

RELEASE NUMBER:   2015-057_Pannell

# # #

For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/

Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.