St. Louis Co. Man Convicted Of Making, Possessing Child Porn
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A 41-year-old St. Louis County man was convicted in a federal court Thursday of producing and possessing child pornography.
Nude images of a 5-year-old child were submitted to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in April of 2014. Investigators eventually traced them to Sean Gerald Penoncello.
A search warrant of Penoncello's residence was executed in late March of this year, where investigators seized two hidden thumb drives. A recording device was also found in his trunk.
The thumb drives contained images and videos of a second victim, who was 14 at the time. There were images and videos of several other victims who were already in NCMEC's database.
"This conviction will protect other children from the predatory behavior of Mr. Penoncello," St. Louis County Sgt. John Backman said. "In addition, the conviction sends a message to others involved in this underground activity that they will be pursued, located, and brought to justice."
The case was initiated by Project Safe Childhood, who work to rescue victims and stop internet child exploitation.
Penoncello's sentencing date has not been set.