Patrick Neistat, Child Pornography, Missouri 2023

ST. LOUIS, Missouri – In a harsh blow to child predators, a Florissant man has been sentenced to 170 months in prison for his involvement in child pornography.

Patrick Neistat, 24, pleaded guilty in October to one count of receipt of child pornography. He admitted to possessing images and videos containing child sexual abuse material on multiple cellular phones.

According to the investigation, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received an exigent Cyber Tip on Sept. 8, 2022, indicating that the user of a Skout social media account had uploaded multiple images depicting the sexual abuse of a minor. Detectives traced the account to Neistat’s home.

During the investigation, authorities seized two phones from Neistat. On one phone, investigators found 123 images and 4 videos of child pornography, as well as 187 images and 18 videos of ‘age difficult’ pornography and 634 CGI/animated images depicting children in sexual acts. On the second phone, they found 12 images containing CSAM as well as sexually explicit conversations and explicit photos that Neistat had received from a 12-year-old girl and an apparent 14-year-old girl.

The FBI and the St. Louis County Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Hayes prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.

The case highlights the importance of vigilance in protecting children from online predators. As the investigation shows, even seemingly innocuous social media platforms can be used to disseminate child pornography. The consequences for Neistat are severe, and serve as a warning to others who would engage in similar activities.

Neistat’s sentence is a result of his guilty plea in October. He will serve 170 months in prison for his crime.

Defendant: Patrick Neistat

Criminal Charges: Receipt of Child Pornography

City and State: Florissant, Missouri

Date: Thursday (no specific date given)

Sentence: 170 months in prison

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