Facial Recognition Leads to Arrest of Duluth Man in Child Exploitation Case
Photo via St. Louis County Jail
A Duluth man is facing felony charges after authorities used advanced forensic technology to connect him to child exploitation materials found during a wide-ranging international investigation.
Authorities say Jeffery Lee Niemi, 39, of Duluth, was arrested after he was tracked down using facial recognition software and other digital forensic methods following the discovery of a series of explicit videos by the Queensland Police Service in Australia.
The materials—which involved a juvenile victim—were flagged as part of an international investigation into the distribution of child sexual abuse materials.
U.S. Homeland Security informed the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office after 26 videos and 21 images surfaced during the investigation. In the videos, an adult male voice can be heard speaking to the juvenile and various locations are depicted, including a residential setting and a public locker room.
Investigators used facial recognition technology and publicly available images on social media accounts to confirm the identities of those portrayed in the content. A search warrant executed at Niemi’s residence in Duluth on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, revealed additional evidence tying him to the explicit recordings. Items found in the home included distinctive clothing and accessories that matched those seen in the videos.
The investigation also found some the recordings appeared to have been made in a local public facility that Niemi frequented, according to investigators.
According to court records, Niemi was previously convicted of possession of pornographic work in 2016 and was ordered to serve seven years of probation, register as a predatory offender and attend sex offender treatment. Records show Niemi was discharged from supervision in April 2023.
Niemi has been charged with four counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and is currently in custody. Each charge carries a potential sentence of up to 30 years in prison.
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