A Minneapolis man has been sentenced to 27 years in federal prison after prosecutors said he spent years grooming a 12-year-old girl online and coercing her into sending sexual images. The case, built on what investigators described as tens of thousands of messages, capped off a lengthy federal investigation into the abuse.
According to WJON News, the U.S. Attorney’s Office identified the defendant as Robert Levi of Minneapolis and said a federal judge handed down the 27-year sentence. WJON reported that the federal case grew out of an investigation by the FBI.
How Prosecutors Say He Groomed the Victim
A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Minnesota, states that Levi posed online as a 16-year-old boy and "catfished" the girl, exchanging tens of thousands of messages between February 2022 and February 2025 and coercing her to produce child sexual abuse material. The office noted that Levi had been convicted in Stearns County in February 2024 of second-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a six-year-old, was required to register as a sex offender, and was placed on probation, and that prosecutors allege he continued exploiting the 12-year-old during and after that state case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristian C. Weir is handling the federal prosecution.
Prosecutors' Message and Law Enforcement Response
In announcing the sentence, Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick said that "our country is enduring a sextortion epidemic," underscoring how seriously federal authorities say they are taking cases involving online coercion of minors. Investigators pointed to ongoing efforts under Project Safe Childhood and similar initiatives that prioritize repeat offenders who use digital platforms to target children.
Legal Stakes and What Comes Next
Federal law imposes steep penalties for producing child sexual abuse material. Under 18 U.S.C. § 2251, as outlined by Cornell Law School, a defendant with one prior qualifying conviction faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years, with even higher required terms for multiple prior convictions. Local reporting at the time of the original indictment noted that prosecutors expected Levi would be subject to that 25-year mandatory minimum when the federal charges were filed, coverage that KNSI tied to both the federal case and the earlier Stearns County conviction.
Levi remains in custody and is set to serve the federal term imposed by the court. Any post-sentencing motions or appeals would be the next steps in the legal process. Authorities say the prosecution is one piece of a broader push to disrupt online predators and shield children from sexual exploitation.
