Timothy T. Duax U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa
Priest Morris, a 21-year-old from Sioux City, Iowa, has pled guilty to possession of child pornography in federal court in Sioux City. During the plea hearing, Morris confessed to using applications such as Discord, Twitter, Telegram, and Snapchat to receive, distribute, and possess child pornography from January to August 2024. The material included content involving minors under the age of 12.
The Sioux City Police Department was alerted by two CyberTips from the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children concerning a Snapchat account involved in uploading child pornography. This account was traced back to Morris. Law enforcement obtained a warrant and conducted a search of Morris's electronic devices. Upon execution of the warrant, Morris admitted to holding the illicit content on his phone and iPad. A forensic examination revealed he had more than 1,500 images and six videos, including material depicting sadistic or masochistic conduct and content involving infants and toddlers.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched in 2006 by the Department of Justice aimed at addressing child sexual exploitation and abuse. This project harnesses federal, state, and local resources to track, apprehend, and charge those who exploit children and to find and rescue victims.
Morris is currently in the custody of the United States Marshal as he awaits sentencing. Before sentencing, a presentence report will be prepared. Morris may face up to 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and a minimum of five years of supervised release post-imprisonment.
The investigation was conducted by the Sioux City Police Department, and the case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Kraig R. Hamit.
