A St. Paul man on probation for prior child pornography charges has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after authorities say he was found in possession of new material last year.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota Erica MacDonald announced on Tuesday the sentencing of Brandon James Jotblad, 29, to 120 months in federal prison for possession of child pornography.
Under the terms of a plea agreement, Jotblad pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child pornography and was sentenced yesterday before Judge Eric C. Tostrud in U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota. Under the plea agreement, the U.S. attorney agreed not to charge Jotblad with any other crimes associated with his conduct, according to a federal court filing.
Jotblad was previously charged in 2014 in Ramsey County Court with 29 counts of possessing child pornography in two separate cases. He was eventually granted a plea agreement in which he pleaded guilty to only five counts, and the remaining counts were dismissed.
Jotblad was sentenced to a total of 129 months in prison in July 2014 on the five counts. However, the sentences were stayed by Judge Salvador Rosas. Jotblad was instead given credit for time already served of 177 days and was placed on supervised probation for a term of five years.
According to a federal court filing, in July 2019, Jotblad was found to be in possession of at least two MP4 videos depicting graphic sexual images of minor children engaged in sexual acts with other minors and adults. During this time Jotblad was still on probation for the prior Ramsey County felony conviction for possession of child pornography.
“Downloading sexually explicit images or videos involving children is not a victimless crime. These are real children who are re-victimized every time the images are downloaded and shared,” MacDonald said.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.
This case was the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI, the St. Paul Police Department, and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, with assistance from the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office and the Anoka County Attorney’s Office.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander D. Chiquoine.
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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.