MARQUETTE — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Michigan, Western), published as received.

MARQUETTE – U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Timothy VerHey announced that Dalton Wayne Braun, 36, of Kingsford, was sentenced to 360 months in prison followed by 120 months of supervised release for the sexual exploitation of a child. During sentencing, U.S. District Judge Robert J. Jonker noted that the case involved “truly egregious facts.”

Braun admitted when pleading guilty that he had recorded a video of himself sexually abusing a minor child in July 2024.  Braun also admitted that he then distributed that video over the internet.

U.S. Attorney Timothy VerHey said, “Dalton Braun repeatedly abused a small child, who was not even old enough to voice the abuse he was suffering.  No one should tolerate such abuse and my office certainly will not.  I commend my staff and our law enforcement partners for their diligence.”

“Crimes committed against children are some of the most unforgivable and those who commit them deserve severe and lasting consequences,” said Jennifer Runyan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office. “The maximum sentence imposed on Dalton Braun demonstrates the gravity of his depraved actions and the severe impact it had on children across the United States. I am grateful for the dedicated efforts of FBI Detroit’s Marquette Resident Agency, FBI Milwaukee’s Green Bay Resident Agency, the Michigan State Police, the Kingsford Department of Public Safety, the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan for protecting the most vulnerable members in our communities by stopping Mr. Braun before he could commit another heinous offense.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation led by the Marquette Resident Agency, Michigan State Police, Kingsford Department of Public Safety, and Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office investigated this case. Information obtained as part of this investigation has thus far led to six additional child victims being recovered from abusive situations; five additional federal indictments; and two state or local arrests.

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, please visit justice.gov/PSC.

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