Carver man charged in sextortion of minors and an adult
A Carver man has been charged in a case involving child pornography and sextortion.
Mitchell James Ottinger, 25, of Carver, was charged with two counts of production and attempted production of child pornography and two counts of threatening extortion, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office. Ottinger worked as a substitute teacher and paraprofessional for "School District 1," according to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court.
It is unclear where Ottinger worked. When asked on Wednesday, U.S. Attorney spokesperson Tasha Zerna said that the location has not been disclosed and might not be identified in the future since the case involves minors.
An image authorities obtained from Ottinger's e-mail showed his work badge for an elementary school, according to the complaint.
Ottinger is accused of pretending to be a young female with a romantic or sexual interest in his victims, then luring minors and an adult into sending explicit images and videos.
If a victim sent him an explicit image and then blocked or ignored him, he would contact them on another account and threaten to publish the explicit material to friends and family unless demands for additional ones were met.
A victim, who was 15 at the time, reported the man to the FBI's National Threat Operations Center in July 2020.
Authorities believe Ottinger engaged in sextortion and catfishing activities since at least 2012.
They believe there may be more victims.
Anyone with information can call the FBI Minneapolis Division at (763) 569-8000.
Alex Chhith • 612-673-4759
