Show-Me State Times

A man from Linn County, Missouri, admitted on Monday to recording himself having sexual contact with a minor. Russell Alan Pirkey, 54, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to a charge of sexual exploitation of a child.

Pirkey confessed to using his cell phone to record himself with a 10-year-old girl. The crime came to light on April 8, 2023, when the Brookfield Police Department received concerns about his interactions with the victim.

Pirkey has agreed to forfeit a cell phone, a tablet, and various electronic storage devices seized during the investigation.

He is scheduled for sentencing on January 14, 2025. The charge of sexual exploitation carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and can go up to 30 years.

The FBI, the Brookfield Police Department, and the Linn County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Chapman is handling the prosecution.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The project brings together federal, state, and local resources to locate and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet and aims to identify and rescue victims. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at www.justice.gov/psc.