Cedar Rapids Man Who Produced Child Pornography Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison

A Cedar Rapids man, responsible for producing child pornography and then distributing it online, was sentenced today to 360 months in prison.

Nathan Krejci, age 41, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison sentence after a June 24, 2020 guilty plea to being a drug user in possession of a firearm, sexual exploitation of a child, and distribution of child pornography. 

Information disclosed at his plea and sentencing hearings showed that, beginning in September 2016 and continuing to September 24, 2019, Krejci engaged in sexually explicit conduct with a female child between the ages of 6 and 9 years old.  Krejci produced a video of the conduct and distributed still shots of the video to an undercover officer online.  Krejci later admitted he distributed the images to less than 12 people on the internet.  The Court found that Krejci drugged the victim prior to the sexual abuse, rendering the victim unconscious during the abuse.  Krejci also sexually and physically abused a 7 to 9-year-old boy approximately 13 years ago.  The abuse included holding a gun to the child’s head when the child refused to drink alcohol.  Investigators executed a warrant at Krejci’s residence in September 2019.  During the search, they seized multiple electronic devices, two guns, marijuana, and some methamphetamine.  Krejci admitted to being a frequent user of marijuana and methamphetamine.  Investigators searched Krejci’s electronic devices and located between 300 and 600 images of child pornography.  Krejci received some of the images from people online in exchange for sending them the images he produced with the 6 to 9-year-old female victim.

Krejci has some criminal history.  This includes an OWI conviction wherein Krejci hit two pedestrians and left the scene. 

“Mr. Krejci earned every day of his 30-year sentence with his shocking criminal conduct,” said Acting United States Attorney Sean Berry following the sentencing.  “Our community is safer thanks to the hard work of our law enforcement partners.”

Krejci was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Krejci was sentenced to 360 months’ imprisonment.  He was ordered to make payment of $300 to the special assessment fund.  He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Corkery and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  After today’s sentencing, FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel said, “The 30-year sentence of Nathan Krejci 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.”  The following agencies also assisted in the investigation: the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Cedar Rapids Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.    

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

This case was also brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/download?inline.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-0110.                                

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