U.S. Attorney’s Office – Northern District of Iowa
SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Paul William Flett, 44, of Humboldt, Iowa, was sentenced on June 3, 2025, in U.S. District Court in Sioux City to 15 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting a minor. Flett pleaded guilty on January 23, 2025, to one count of sexual exploitation of a child.
According to court documents and evidence presented in the case, Flett used the messaging app Kik to send child pornography to underage girls and solicited them to send sexually explicit images and videos of themselves. During a June 6, 2024 search of Flett’s home, he admitted to the conduct in a consensual interview with law enforcement, acknowledging that he had hidden his phone in a closet upon realizing officers were at his door.
A forensic analysis of Flett’s devices and Kik account revealed 16 videos and 60 images of child sexual abuse material, including content that he had coerced minors into creating and sending. Many of the files depicted sadistic or masochistic abuse, and some featured prepubescent children, infants, and toddlers.
Flett was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Leonard T. Strand to 180 months (15 years) in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $3,600 in restitution and special assessments. There is no possibility of parole in the federal system. Flett remains in custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending transfer to a federal prison.
Project Safe Childhood
This prosecution is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in 2006 to combat the growing threat of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The initiative brings together federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to identify, arrest, and prosecute those who exploit children and to rescue victims of abuse.
For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc. Additional resources for internet safety can also be found under the “Resources” tab on the PSC website.
Investigating Agencies
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Cyber-Crime Unit, and the Webster County Sheriff’s Office in Missouri. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kraig R. Hamit.
