Mountrail County Man Sentenced for Possession of Child Pornography

BISMARCK - U. S. Attorney Christopher C. Myers announced that on March 21, 2016, Timothy Howell, 49, Mountrail County, ND, was sentenced before U. S. District Judge Daniel L. Hovland to serve 12 years and 7 months in prison for Possession of Materials Involving the Sexual Exploitation of Minors. Judge Hovland also ordered Howell to serve a lifetime of supervised release, pay $500 in restitution, and also pay a $100 special assessment to the Crime Victims’ Fund.

This case came to the attention of law enforcement when a ND Bureau of Criminal Investigation special agent discovered that a computer geographically located in ND was sharing child pornography in a peer-to-peer network; that computer was later identified as belonging to Howell. Through forensic examination it was discovered that there were 8,968 images and videos of child pornography. Howell has a prior conviction of child pornography in Dec. 2009, to which he was sentenced to 57 months imprisonment and 10 years of supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations, ND Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Montréal County Sheriff’s Department.

Assistant U. S. Attorney Gary Delorme prosecuted the case

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney Offices throughout the nation, Project Safe Childhood, in conjunction with Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), help federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies enhance their investigative responses to offenders who use the Internet, online communications systems, and/or computer technology to sexually exploit children. The ICAC Program is a national network of 61 coordinated task forces engaging in proactive investigations, forensic investigations, and criminal prosecutions. Project Safe Childhood also helps to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.