Minnesota woman convicted of producing child pornography with young girl
MINNEAPOLIS — A suburban Twin Cities woman was convicted in federal court Thursday for producing pornography with a pre-pubescent child.
This conviction resulted from an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Cottage Grove (Minnesota) Police Department.
Roxanne Merrell, 35, of Cottage Grove, Minnesota, was convicted on one count of producing child pornography after a three-day jury trial. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
“HSI is committed to aggressively pursuing predators who create or trade child pornography,” said HSI St. Paul Special Agent in Charge J. Michael Netherland. "It’s our job to do everything that we can to protect the most vulnerable members of our society.”
As proven at trial that Merrell knew Travis Guenthner of Washburn, North Dakota, who was convicted in May 2014 in North Dakota on multiple counts of producing child pornography and other child exploitation offenses. Guenthner offered Merrell $100,000 to take pornographic photos of a young girl, which she took while the child was sleeping.
Other pictures of the child’s naked buttocks and clothed pubic area were also discovered on Guenthner’s computer. The photographs, some of which included an image of an adult hand, were later discovered on Guenthner’s computer. The adult hand appearing in the photos belonged to Merrell.
This investigation was conducted under HSI’s Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 10,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2014, more than 2,300 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative and more than 1,000 victims identified or rescued.
HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. From outside the U.S. and Canada, callers should dial 802-872-6199. Hearing impaired users can call TTY 802-872-6196. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI’s Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.
HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.
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