Pair sentenced federally in child sex crime investigation

BISMARCK, N.D. (KMOT) – A federal judge sentenced a Minot man and a Velva woman to decades in prison following a child sex crimes investigation.

Federal prosecutors said 33-year-old Katie Heidinger pleaded guilty to six counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and was ordered to serve 30 years in prison.

Prosecutors said a federal jury convicted 46-year-old Derrick Walker in late January, and he was ordered to serve 45 years.

According to the U.S. District Attorney’s Office, Heidinger testified during Walker’s trial that she produced sexually explicit images of young children for Walker at his request.

Prosecutors said Heidinger admitted to also creating images and videos of herself abusing the children, and that Walker requested she engage in similar conduct with three other children.

Both will serve a lifetime of supervised release to follow.

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