North Dakota Man Jailed 40 Years for Child Porn Hoard

FARGO — A 36-year-old Grand Forks man was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison for receiving and possessing child pornography, a grim reminder of the darkest corners of the internet.

Nicholas Morgan-Derosier, 36, of Grand Forks, ND, appeared before Chief Judge Peter D. Welte, U.S. District Court, Fargo, ND, on May 30, 2024, and was handed down a 40-year sentence, along with a lifetime of supervised release, $700 in special assessments, and $39,000 in restitution to the 13 victims of his depraved crimes.

Morgan-Derosier pleaded guilty to one count of Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography and six counts of Possession of Child Pornography on September 29, 2023. The charges stemmed from videos and images that Grand Forks Police and HSI found during a search warrant at Morgan-Derosier’s residence, which was initially executed on suspicion of his fraudulent lawn service business activity.

During the search, officers located more than 6,000 images and videos of graphic sexual abuse of prepubescent minors on at least six devices, including nude images of prepubescent family members and explicit chats about raping them. The evidence at sentencing showed that Morgan-Derosier raped or sexually assaulted several other individuals when those individuals were minors.

“The monstrous conduct of this defendant towards children makes this strong sentence an appropriate one,” said Mac Schneider, United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota. “This defendant preyed on kids online and in real life, and the public is safer now that he is in the long-term custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Homeland Security Investigations, the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Grand Forks Police Department investigated the case. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Puhl and Trial Attorney Charles Schmitz of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section are prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.

This case highlights the importance of cooperation between federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies in bringing predators like Morgan-Derosier to justice. As the investigation revealed, Morgan-Derosier was a significant threat to the community, and his conviction and sentencing serve as a warning to others who would exploit children online and offline.

The public is safer now that Morgan-Derosier is behind bars, but the scars of his crimes will remain with his victims for a lifetime. As the Department of Justice continues to combat child exploitation and abuse, it is essential that we remember the importance of vigilance and cooperation in protecting our children from predators like Morgan-Derosier.

This case is a stark reminder that the internet can be a breeding ground for child predators, and it is our collective responsibility to ensure that those who would harm children are held accountable for their crimes.

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