Guy Edward Wheelock, Child Pornography, Minnesota 2013

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Coon Rapids Man Indicted for Receiving, Possessing, and Attempting to Distribute Child Pornography

Guy Edward Wheelock, a 54-year-old resident of Coon Rapids, Minnesota, has been charged with seven counts of attempted distribution of child pornography, one count of receipt of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography.

The indictment, filed on May 20, 2013, alleges that Wheelock attempted to distribute, via a computer, videos involving minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct on seven occasions between September 13 and 20, 2011. It also alleges that on February 2, 2012, Wheelock received videos of similar conduct, and that he possessed several videos of similar conduct.

If convicted, Wheelock faces a potential maximum penalty of 40 years for each attempted distribution and receipt count and 20 years on the possession count.

The case is the result of an investigation by the Minnesota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Minneapolis Police Department, and the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office.

Distribution, receipt, and possession of child pornography are against the law. In addition to prosecuting these cases, the Justice Department is funding a study focused on the correlation between involvement in child pornography and hands-on sexual abuse of children.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (“PSC”), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

An indictment is a determination by a grand jury that there is probable cause to believe that offenses have been committed by a defendant. A defendant, of course, is presumed innocent until he or she pleads guilty or is proven guilty at trial.