Four months after a former employee of the Children’s Museum of Brownsville pleaded guilty to being in possession of child pornography, he has learned how much time he will spend in federal prison for committing the crime against children.
Daniel Benjamin Molstad appeared Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Rolando Olvera Jr. who sentenced Molstad, of Brownsville, to 84 months or seven years in federal prison to be followed by 25 years of supervised release, federal court documents indicate.
Molstad will begin serving his prison sentence on Jan.13, 2023, when he surrenders himself to U.S. Marshals. This will be nearly one year after his arrest.
Moldstad was arrested Jan. 27 and authorities said he used the Telegram app to share the videos if child pornography.
According to court documents, the Texas Attorney General’s Office on May 25, 2021, contacted the Homeland Security Investigations and Rio Grande Valley Child Exploration Investigations Task Force with an investigative referral from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The referral was from a cloud-based storage involving a suspect uploading multiple files of child exploitation, authorities said.
The investigation led authorities to Molstad, and on Jan. 27, special agents with RGV CEITF conducted a “consensual interview” with the man at his work place in Brownsville, court documents reflect.
During the interview, Molstad admitted to receiving, distributing and possessing child pornography, according to authorities. He stated “he had been downloading child pornography for approximately two years through online chat groups,” the documents state.
Through a search of Molstad’s cellphone, agents said they determined he had received or downloaded more than 200 videos of child pornography from Aug. 1, 2021, to Jan. 22, 2022, the documents state.
The videos depicted children engaged in sexual acts, officials said.
“In addition, some of the videos depicted infants from approximately three to six months of age engaged in sexual acts,” according to the documents.
Molstad was charged with one count of distribution or receipt of child pornography and one count of possessing or accessing child pornography.
Although Molstad had been employed by the museum around the time of his arrest, CMB Director Felipe Pena III said authorities assured him that none of Molstad’s alleged wrongdoing occurred at the museum.
There is also a long list of rules that Molstad must follow once he is released from prison that include, he must register as a sex offender, must not possess or use computers or other electronic communication or data storage devices or media without the prior approval of his probation officer, federal court documents read.
If allowed to use computers, he will be subject to unannounced search of any computers.
He must also stay 100 feet away from school yards, playgrounds or arcades or places used by children under 18 years of age, unless approved in writing by the U.S. Probation Office.
Also, as part of his sentencing, Molstad “shall not associate in any with NAMBLA (North American Man-Boy Lover Association), its members, or a similar association, including any group, club, individual, or organization, formal or informal, which supports and/or encourages the sexual exploitation of children,” according to federal court documents.
Molstad must also not date or cohabitate with anyone who has children under the age of 18, unless approved in advance in writing by the U.S. Probation Officer.
