Jesse Blaine, 42, of Harlan, Iowa, has been sentenced to seven years in federal prison after Our Rescue-sponsored Electronic Storage Detection (ESD) K9 Cruzer and his handler helped search his home, finding hidden electronic devices containing child sexual abuse material.
The investigation began with a CyberTip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which linked an online account to Blaine. Law enforcement obtained a warrant to search his residence, where ESD K9 Cruzer, trained to sniff out electronic storage devices, located two critical pieces of evidence.
The devices were forensically examined and found to contain explicit material, including images and videos of child sexual abuse, as well as search histories for similar content.
This evidence established Blaine’s role in receiving, viewing, and storing illegal explicit material.
Blaine was sentenced on December 12, 2024, to 84 months in federal prison. Upon release, he will serve five years of supervised release and must pay $21,000 in restitution. There is no parole in the federal system.
The investigation was conducted by the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation-Cybercrime Bureau, the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation-Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, and the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force. Blaine’s prosecution was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative targeting child exploitation.