Repeat Offender Sentenced to 45 Months for Possessing Child Pornography

MADISON, WIS. - Timothy M. O'Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Brandon Grazioso, 24, Evansville, Wisconsin, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 47 months in federal prison for possessing child pornography. This term of imprisonment will be followed by 20 years of supervised release. Grazioso pleaded guilty to this offense on July 11, 2024.

In December 2021, law enforcement received information that Grazioso was posting explicit images onto Kik. Using that information, officers obtained a search warrant for the defendant's home where they seized a phone that contained numerous images of child pornography.

The defendant was previously arrested for and charged with possessing child pornography in Wisconsin state court in 2018 but entered into a deferred prosecution agreement. He was still under the terms of that agreement when he committed this federal offense. Separate from the federal sentence, Grazioso also received a prison sentence from the state for his violations of that agreement.

At sentencing, Judge Conley expressed concern that Grazioso had not demonstrated much of an ability to stay away from child pornography but remained hopeful that the defendant could address his treatment needs.

The charge against Grazioso was the result of an investigation conducted by Wisconsin Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigation, the Rock County Sheriff's Department, and the Evansville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman prosecuted this case.

This investigation was a part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. 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.