A Colorado man has been sentenced to ten years in prison and will be subject to lifetime supervised release after being convicted of child sexual exploitation offenses. Steven Glenn Christiansen, 69, of Fort Collins, used a mobile messaging application with end-to-end encryption to participate in exclusive group chats where users exchanged images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children.
According to court documents, members of these groups shared livestreams and files on third-party platforms, often involving minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct at the direction of group participants. Christiansen communicated with other users to request and exchange this material. Authorities executed a search warrant at his residence and seized several digital devices containing thousands of images and videos involving child sexual abuse. Christiansen admitted to possessing these materials.
Christiansen pleaded guilty in August 2025 to one count of possession of child pornography. He had previously been convicted in Colorado for sexually assaulting a child in March 2000.
Trial Attorney Kaylynn Foulon from the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Hindman for the District of Colorado prosecuted the case.
The sentencing was announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Peter McNeilly for the District of Colorado, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Marvin Massey of the FBI Denver Field Office.
“This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.justice.gov/psc,” according to the announcement.
