Timothy T. Duax U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa
A man from Waterloo, Iowa, has entered a guilty plea in federal court for possessing child pornography. Forrest Rindels, 69, admitted to two counts of possession during the hearing in Cedar Rapids. He acknowledged having child pornography on both a tablet and a micro SD card between 2021 and 2022. Rindels also confessed to a prior conviction for receipt of child pornography in the Northern District of Iowa in 2016.
The sentencing will be scheduled following the preparation of a presentence report by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Until then, Rindels remains under the custody of the United States Marshal. The charges carry a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years and could lead to up to forty years' imprisonment, along with fines up to $500,000 and supervised release ranging from five years to life after imprisonment.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 aimed at addressing child sexual exploitation and abuse. The program brings together federal, state, and local resources to prosecute offenders and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood or Internet safety education resources, visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.
Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel is prosecuting this case following investigations by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and the Waterloo Police Department.
