A 40-year-old Mankato man with two prior convictions for encouraging child sexual abuse has been sentenced to 35 years in federal prison for producing child sexual abuse material, federal officials announced Tuesday. Mitchell Ray Williams pleaded guilty to the charges in November 2025, following a federal investigation that uncovered hundreds of child pornography files on his devices, including nine files that reportedly involved visibly pre-pubescent child victims engaged in sexually explicit acts.
The sentence, which amounts to 420 months, was formally handed down by U.S. District Judge Jerry W. Blackwell in St. Paul on August 19, 2026, according to the U.S. Department of Justice, though the sentence was not publicly announced until September 1. As reported by KEYC News Now, court documents show that in October 2024, Williams used messaging apps to share child pornography and attempted to employ a minor male victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct in order to produce child sexual abuse material, recording the victim in the process.
A Third Conviction, a Harsher Penalty
Williams' record played a central role in the length of his sentence. He was convicted of encouraging child sexual abuse in August 2005 and again in April 2017, both times in another state, the outlet's report notes. Under 18 U.S.C. § 2252A, defendants convicted of producing or receiving child sexual abuse material who carry a prior qualifying sex offense conviction face an elevated mandatory minimum of 15 years, with a statutory maximum of 40 years.
Christopher D. Dotson, special agent in charge of the FBI Minneapolis Field Office, said Williams is now on his third conviction for child sexual exploitation offenses. “Production, advertisement, and distribution of child sexual abuse material cause serious and lasting harm,” Dotson said, adding that “the abuse and exploitation stop here” and that the sentence “will protect children from Mitchell Williams for decades.”
U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen, who announced the sentencing, described Williams as a repeat sexual predator who posed a danger to vulnerable children. Rosen said the sentencing holds Williams accountable for the harm inflicted on child victims and their families.
How the Sentence Compares Nationally
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristian Weir led the federal prosecution in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota. According to U.S. Sentencing Commission data for fiscal year 2025, federal repeat child pornography offenders facing the 15-year mandatory minimum served an average sentence of 241 months nationwide — making Williams' 420-month term nearly double the national average, as previously reported by Hoodline.
Williams was originally indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2025 on three counts: production and attempted production of child pornography, advertisement of child pornography, and possession of child pornography. Following his initial federal court appearance in February 2025, U.S. Magistrate Judge Douglas L. Micko ordered him held in custody pending trial, and he remained detained throughout the proceedings.
Part of a Broader Local Investigation
The case was investigated under Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative launched in May 2006 to combine federal, state, and local resources against child sexual exploitation. Locally, the investigation was a joint effort between the Mankato Department of Public Safety and the FBI Minneapolis Field Office, according to KROC-AM News.
Williams' prosecution is one of several recent federal child exploitation cases to emerge from Mankato. A former Mankato teacher was sentenced to six years in April 2025 for distributing child sexual abuse material, and in August 2026, 39-year-old Mankato resident Alex James Wall pleaded guilty in a separate federal case. Because federal sentences carry no parole, Williams is expected to serve the vast majority of his three-decade term in federal custody.
