The seventh man arrested after a months-long investigation into the possession and distribution of child pornography has been charged.
Damian Shawn-Thomas Oelker, 36, of Rochester, made his first appearance Monday in Olmsted County District Court, where he was charged with 10 counts of possessing pornographic work and two counts of disseminating it. All 12 are felonies.
He was released on his own recognizance and is due back in court on April 17.
All of the local cases were brought to the attention of local authorities by investigators with the national Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, who saw the activity during their own undercover investigations.
Six other men appeared in Olmsted County District Court last week:
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Evan Phillip Erickson, 29, and Christopher Blake Dezutter, 47, both face 10 counts of possessing pornographic work and one count each of disseminating porn. All are felonies. Dezutter was released from custody on his own recognizance; Erickson was ordered held on $100,000 unconditional bond.
Mark Steven Pine, 52, has been charged with one felony count each of disseminating pornographic work and possessing pornographic work. He remains in custody in lieu of $20,000 conditional bail.
Three other men were charged last week: Lukky Chang, 20; Dennis Jay Ouk, 20; and Mark David McGinley, 58.
Chang and Ouk were charged with 10 counts of possession of pornographic work and two counts of disseminating pornographic work, all felonies. They've been released on conditional bonds of $10,000 and $5,000, respectively. McGinley faces eight felony counts of disseminating pornographic work. He remains in custody in lieu of $500,000 bond.
The suspects were not connected in any way, authorities say. According to the criminal complaints, the youngest victims in each case ranged from infancy to about 10 years old.
In addition to local law enforcement officials, personnel from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension were in Rochester last week, helping process the scenes.
Also assisting the Rochester Police Department were officials from the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office, the Minnesota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
