Indiana Man Charged with Attempted Sexual Exploitation of a Child Following Undercover Investigation

Brad D. Schimel, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on August 25, 2026, a federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment charging Christopher L. Guinn (age 50), of South Bend, Indiana, with attempted sexual exploitation of a child.

According to the indictment and the underlying criminal complaint, Guinn engaged in online communications with an undercover law enforcement officer whom he believed to be a 12-year-old girl. During these communications, Guinn sent the undercover officer multiple sexually explicit videos and solicited sexually explicit images and videos in return. The investigation further determined that Guinn possessed child sexual abuse material and has attempted to sexually exploit multiple minors across the United States.

Guinn was arrested in South Bend on August 5, 2026, and was ordered detained by a Magistrate Judge in the Northern District of Indiana. He is currently being transported to the Eastern District of Wisconsin to face the federal charge. The offense carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years imprisonment and a maximum of 30 years imprisonment.

This case was investigated by the Outagamie County Sheriff's Office, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation - Green Bay Resident Office, the Wisconsin Department of Justice ICAC Task Force, the St. Joseph's County Sheriff's Office, the Indiana State Police ICAC Task Force, the United States Marshals Service - Great Lakes Fugitive Task Force, and Homeland Security Investigations.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative led by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006, by the U.S. Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to 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.projectsafechildhood.gov.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

# # #

For further information contact:

Public Affairs Officer Steve Caballero

(414) 297-1700

Follow us on X