Ironton Man Convicted Of Child Pornography Charges

A federal jury has found an Ironton man guilty of distribution, receipt and possession of child pornography.

Roger Erik Splettstoeszer, 53, was charged in a six-count indictment on June 22, 2017, and, on April 19, 2018, was found guilty on all counts by a federal jury in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Splettstoeszer was convicted on four counts of distribution of child pornography, one count of receipt of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography.

As proven at trial, from at least April through September 2015, Splettstoeszer, who owned and operated a computer repair business called Deepsystems in Aitkin, Minnesota, used the internet to search for, receive and distribute images and videos of child pornography.

During that time period, undercover investigators with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, discovered multiple known child pornography files on the Ares peer-to-peer network. Investigators determined that the files were from a computer with an IP address assigned to Deepsystems.

Based on the undercover downloads, investigators obtained and executed a search warrant on Deepsystems, seizing multiple computers. Following a forensic review of the computers, investigators found that the devices contained, in total, more than 35,000 photos and 400 videos of child pornography.

The case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Aitkin Police Department.