Bemidji Man Sentenced to 21 Years in Prison for Advertising, Distributing Images of Child Sexual Abuse Over the Dark Web

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Craig James Myran, a Bemidji man, was sentenced today to 262 months in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release for his involvement with a site on the dark web dedicated to the advertisement and distribution of images and videos depicting child sexual abuse and his possession of similar material in his apartment.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Craig James Myran, 47, of Bemidji, Minnesota, was an active participant on a site on the dark web that was dedicated to discussing and trafficking in child sexual abuse material.  For years, he used an account with a unique username to make over a thousand posts in which he shared images of child sexual abuse on the site. In at least one post, Myran requested specific files of known child sexual abuse material from other users. And in another post, he advertised over 100 images depicting the sadomasochistic sexual abuse of two prepubescent minors.  FBI special agents executed a search warrant on Myran’s apartment in Bemidji on Dec. 8, 2022, where they found numerous hard drives and a cell phone. Forensic analysis of these devices uncovered evidence establishing that Myran was the user of this unique account on the dark web site — including files of the child sexual abuse material that he shared and requested on the website, as well as a message directed to his unique alias — and thousands of other images of child sexual abuse material.

According to the government’s sentencing memorandum, Myran’s sexual exploitation of minors was not limited to his activity on this particular dark-web site. He was simultaneously an active participant on multiple other dark-web sites dedicated to trafficking in child sexual abuse material and reported that he previously produced his own child sexual abuse material by screen-recording minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct during online webcam interactions.  

On Nov. 20, 2024, a federal jury convicted Myran for advertising, distributing, and possessing material depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He was sentenced today in U.S. District Court by Judge Eric C. Tostrud.  In handing down the sentence, Judge Tostrud remarked, “The defendant’s crimes reflected disregard for the victims’ humanity.  He treated society’s most vulnerable victims, young children, as sex objects and nothing more.”  Judge Tostrud added that Myran’s “crimes were far from impulsive.  He did not stumble onto the dark web by accident. He used it in an effort to conceal his activities, because he knew what he was doing was very wrong.” Judge Tostrud concluded that Myran’s “depraved mind” and his “refusal to accept any responsibility” for his crimes created a “serious need to protect the public.”

“Crimes involving the sexual abuse of children are incalculably serious,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick.  “For decades, believing he was protected by the dark web’s cloak of anonymity, Myran proudly trafficked in child sexual abuse material. He was deeply enmeshed in dark-web communities —sprawling criminal enterprises and flourishing online communities where offenders from around the world gather to normalize and encourage their sexual interest in children. This depraved behavior is sick, it is wrong, and it is not acceptable in Minnesota.”

“Myran’s actions represent a calculated and deliberate effort to abuse and victimize society’s most vulnerable while hiding behind the dark web,” said Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of FBI Minneapolis. “Today’s sentencing proves there is no refuge for those who prey on children. The FBI and our partners will continue to work tirelessly to unmask predators who believe the dark web can shield them from justice.”

The case is the result of an investigation by the FBI Minneapolis Field Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. It was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David Green for the District of Minnesota and Trial Attorney William G. Clayman of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) prosecuted the case.