Joseph Scott Smith sentenced for child sexual abuse material possession

Joseph Scott Smith, 75, has been sentenced in Stearns County, Minnesota, following a guilty plea to possessing pornographic material involving a child under 14. A judge issued a two-year stayed sentence along with 180 days in county jail and 10 years of probation.

The case originated from a Microsoft cyber tip in December 2022, which identified photographs of a sexually assaulted young girl. Subsequent investigations by the St. Cloud Police Department and the FBI led to the seizure of electronic devices. Analysis by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children revealed 468 images of child sexual abuse material on Smith's hard drive, involving children ranging from infants to five-year-olds, as well as videos involving bestiality.