Former School Custodian Admits Possessing Child Pornography

ST. LOUIS - A former high school custodian on Wednesday admitted possessing child sexual abuse material.

Bernard Ray Mennemeier, 58, of O'Fallon, Missouri, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of possession of child pornography. Mennemeier admitted possessing both child pornography and child erotica.

The investigation began on Jan. 2, 2024, after Mennemeier uploaded five videos containing child sexual abuse material to Dropbox. An FBI agent traced the Dropbox account to Mennemeier, and then conducted a court-approved search of the Dropbox account, and then Mennemeier's home. In an interview at the O'Fallon Police Department, Mennemeier admitted messaging someone on Twitter who would sell him child sexual abuse material. Mennemeier said he purchased those materials "numerous" times, his plea agreement says.

Mennemeier is scheduled to be sentenced July 9. The charge carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.

"This crime came to light thanks to a CyberTip reported to our partners at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Bernard Mennemeier thought he could anonymously obtain and possess child sexual abuse material," said Special Agent in Charge Ashley Johnson of the FBI St. Louis Division. "When it comes to protecting children, the FBI is even more diligent in identify, locating, and arresting such perpetrators."

The FBI investigated the case.

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 the Department of Justice Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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 www.justice.gov/psc.