Southern Minnesota Man Gets 17 Years For Sexually Exploiting Child On Snapchat

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A southern Minnesota man was sentenced Tuesday to 17 years in prison for using Snapchat to sexually exploit a preteen child.

The U.S. Attorney's Office District of Minnesota says that 26-year-old Arkady Pichurin, of Mankato, pleaded guilty in September to one count of producing sexually explicit images and videos of a minor.

In his sentencing this week, a judge ordered him to serve 204 months in prison followed by 25 years of supervised released. Additionally, he was ordered to pay $5,000 to the Domestic Trafficking Victims Fund.

According to court documents, Pichurin sexually exploited a minor between the ages of nine and 10 between November of 2020 and January of 2021. Pichurin contacted the child on social media platforms, such as Snapchat, where he'd lie about his age and ask for sexually explicit images and videos from the victim.

Federal prosecutors say that Puchurin admitted to using similar tactics to exploit pornographic images from more than 20 other children. Investigators also found that Puchurin possessed thousands of images depicting sexual abuse against toddlers and bestiality.