Timothy T. Duax U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa
A Carroll County, Iowa man has been sentenced to 50 years in federal prison for child sexual exploitation offenses. Lucas Oliver Knowles, 48, from Carroll, Iowa, pleaded guilty on February 23, 2024, to charges of sexual exploitation of a child, receipt and possession of child pornography, and possession of firearms by a prohibited person.
The FBI National Threat Operations Center received a tip about Knowles' activities. Upon interviewing him, the FBI learned that he had produced child sexual abuse material recently and admitted to sexually abusing a minor. Knowles confessed to collecting child pornography since approximately 1996 and possibly possessing millions of images. A forensic analysis revealed around 1.07 million images and videos of child pornography on his computers.
Knowles was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand in Sioux City. He received a sentence of 600 months' imprisonment along with $21,400 in fines and assessments. Following his prison term, Knowles will serve a 10-year supervised release period. There is no parole in the federal system.
FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel commented on the case: “Lucas Knowles is a sexual predator and a heinous criminal. His appalling actions brought pain and trauma to children for his own gratification. Today’s sentence ensures Knowles will not hurt anyone else.”
United States Attorney Timothy Duax expressed gratitude towards the citizen who provided the tip: “The United States Attorney’s Office thanks the citizen that came forward with the tip and commends the FBI for its excellent investigative work."
This case was part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative by the Department of Justice launched in May 2006 aimed at combating child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide.
