Cedar Rapids man busted when he distributed child porn to undercover officer online

CEDAR RAPIDS - A Cedar Rapids man who sexually abused a child, videotaped it and unknowingly distributed still shots online to an undercover officer, was sentenced Monday to 30 years in federal prison.

Nathan Krejci, 41, pleaded guilty last June in U.S. District Court to being a drug user in possession of a firearm, sexual exploitation of a child and distribution of child pornography.

The plea and sentencing hearings showed that Krejci engaged in sexually explicit conduct with the girl between the ages of 6 and 9 beginning in September 2016 through Sept. 24, 2019.

Krejci produced a video of the conduct and distributed still shots of the video to an undercover officer online, according to court documents. Krejci later admitted he distributed the images to fewer than 12 people on the internet.

The court found Krejci drugged the girl before the sexual abuse, rendering her unconscious during the acts.

Evidence showed Krejci also sexually and physically abused a 7- to 9-year-old boy about 13 years ago. The abuse included holding a gun to the child's head when he refused to drink alcohol.

During the investigation, authorities obtained a search warrant of Krejci's residence in September 2019 and seized multiple electronic devices, two guns, marijuana and methamphetamine. Krejci admitted to authorities to being a frequent user of marijuana and meth.

The search of Krejci's electronic devices recovered between 300 and 600 images of child pornography, according to evidence. Krejci received some of the images from people online in exchange for sending them the images he produced with the child.

Krejci's criminal history includes an operating while intoxicated conviction after Krejci hit two pedestrians and left the scene of the accident.

'Mr. Krejci earned every day of his 30-year sentence with his shocking criminal conduct,” Acting U.S. Attorney Sean Berry said in a statement. 'Our community is safer thanks to the hard work of our law enforcement partners.”

FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel, in a statement, said this sentence means 'a despicable predator will no longer be able to commit horrific crimes against children. This case highlights the dedication of our agents and law enforcement partners to hold those who terrorize children accountable for their crimes.”

U.S. District Judge C.J. Williams ordered Krejci to serve five years of supervised release following his prison term.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Corkery and investigated by the FBI.

Others agencies that assisted in the investigation are the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Cedar Rapids Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

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