Sioux Falls Man Sentenced to 97 Months for Distribution and Receipt of Child Pornography

United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier sentenced a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of distribution and receipt of child pornography on March 15, 2018.

Eric VanEmmerik, age 46, was sentenced to 97 months custody, followed by 5 years of supervised release, ordered to pay $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund, and forfeit his computer.

VanEmmerik was indicted for distribution and receipt of child pornography by a federal grand jury on December 6, 2016.  He pled guilty on December 11, 2017.

On September 11, 2016, a detective with the Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office discovered that VanEmmerik distributed child pornography on the internet.  When members of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force searched his home, they found his computer with thousands of photos of child pornography.   VanEmmerick immediately confessed that he had been viewing and downloading child pornography for years.

This case was investigated by the Minnehaha County Sheriff's Office and Homeland Security Investigations.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Clapper.

VanEmmerik was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.