Mason City Man Pleads Guilty to Possession of Child Pornography

Cleon Mitchell, Jr., 46, from Mason City, Iowa, pled guilty April 30, 2025, in federal court in Sioux City to possession of child pornography.

At the plea hearing, Mitchell admitted that from August 2022, through April 2024, he used the Kik and Snapchat applications to receive and possess visual depictions of child pornography which involved a prepubescent minor or minor under the age of 12.  Snapchat reported Mitchell’s account to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children who in turn reported the information to law enforcement.  Law enforcement connected the account back to Mitchell and obtained a search warrant for his home and electronics.  During the execution of the search warrant, Mitchell admitted he had received and possessed child pornography, and it would be located on his phone.  Forensic analysis of his electronics showed that Mitchell possessed 30 videos and 50 images of child pornography including materials that portrayed sadistic or masochistic conduct as well as prepubescent children and toddlers.    

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006, by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.  For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Mitchell, Jr. remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Mitchell, Jr. faces a possible maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case was investigated by the Mason City Police Department and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kraig R. Hamit.  

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 24-3038.  Follow us on X @USAO_NDIA.