Child Predator Convicted of Failing to Register as a Sex Offender

MINNEAPOLIS – Following a trial before District Judge Susan Richard Nelson, a federal jury convicted Randy Joe Fuller, 54, of failure to register as a sex offender, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.

“Sex offender registration laws exist for one reason—to protect our communities and our children from known threats,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.  “When offenders ignore these requirements, they undermine a system designed to keep our families safe.  Our duty is to protect children from those who prey on them, and we will use every power under federal law to do exactly that.”

Randy Joe Fuller is a convicted sex offender subject to predatory offender status.  According to the public record, in 1990, Fuller was convicted in Fillmore County, Minnesota of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for sexually assaulting a child. Fuller received a sentence of 54 months in prison.

In 2006, as a part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, a comprehensive national sex offender registration system was established called the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). SORNA aims to close gaps and loopholes that existed under prior laws, and to strengthen the nationwide network of sex offender registrations to protect the public from known sexual predators. SORNA requires that qualifying sex offenders provide important information about their locations and employment to local and federal authorities.

Following his release from prison, Fuller had a duty under SORNA to register as a sex offender and to keep his registration current until 2039. 

Fuller did not keep his registration current.  In fact, Fuller has three prior Minnesota state convictions—2000, 2010, and 2013—for failing to keep his registration current.

In December 2024, Fuller moved from Iowa to Houston, Minnesota. However, he chose not notify state and federal authorities that he moved back to Minnesota, as required to do under SORNA.  In January 2025, officers from the Houston, Minnesota Police Department were called to Fuller’s home because of a verbal altercation; they learned that Fuller was living in Minnesota and contacted federal authorities.

After being arrested and charged for failure to register, Fuller was housed at the Sherburne County jail.  On June 30, 2025, while in custody and on a recorded jail call, Fuller discussed the federal charges pending against him.  At one point in the conversation, Fuller acknowledged, “I am guilty of failure to register.”

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the United States Marshals Service (USMS), with assistance from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA), the Houston, Minnesota Police Department, and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI).

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Evan B. Gilead and Matthew D. Evans prosecuted the case.