A Chaska, Minn., sex offender who previously received a sweetheart plea deal from Hennepin County after being convicted of repeatedly sexually abusing a minor, will spend the next 15 years in federal prison after re-offending while on probation.
Nicholas Richard Lugo, 25, was sentenced Thursday to 180 months imprisonment followed by 15 years of supervised release for the distribution of child pornography, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson.
Alpha News previously reported that Lugo was convicted in 2021 of first-degree criminal sexual conduct in Hennepin County for repeated sexual contact with a child who was age 7-8 at the time of the abuse. The abuse occurred in Edina, where Lugo was living with his parents at the time. Lugo received a stay of imposition on the 12-year prison sentence by Judge Jay Quam in a downward departure from sentencing guidelines. Lugo was instead ordered to serve 180 days in the workhouse and five years of predatory offender supervision.
In October 2024, while Lugo was on supervision, he obtained a cellphone prohibited by the terms of his release. He used that unauthorized cell phone to download a social media application and receive and distribute images and videos of child pornography, also known as child sexual abuse material (CSAM), depicting the sexual abuse of young children. The IP address connected to the downloads and distribution of CSAM was again traced to the Chaska home of Lugo’s parent.
The identified images and videos were of real children—real children experienced this abuse, which the defendant downloaded, consumed, and shared for his gratification, a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
“A 15-year sentence cannot undo the harm Lugo repeatedly inflicted on children, but it delivers justice and protection,” said Thompson. “We are prosecuting several cases like this in federal court today, and every one of them is heartbreaking. Minnesota’s children deserve protection, and those who prey on them will face federal consequences.”
Lugo was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court before District Judge Jeffrey M. Bryan, who noted during sentencing that this crime is “one of the more egregious crimes we have in our society.”
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Chaska Police Department and the FBI.
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Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
Crime Watch MN
Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
