Michael A. Kreitler, 55, of Byrnes Mill, a former children’s counselor, has pleaded guilty to a federal child pornography charge. He pleaded guilty Thursday (May 6) in the U.S. Eastern District of Missouri to receipt, distribution and/or possession of child pornography, and the plea agreement calls for Kreitler be sentenced to no more then six and a half years in prison, according to court documents.
The child pornography charge carries a minimum sentence of five years and a maximum sentence of 20 years and can include a fine of up to $250,000, court papers said.
Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 12, according to court documents.
Kreitler, who had worked as a children’s counselor at Lutheran Family and Children’s Services and the St. Louis County Special School District, was arrested March 9, 2020, after he agreed to meet an undercover officer at a St. Louis County hotel to watch child pornography and engage in sexual conduct. Kreitler arrived at the hotel with an Honor Defense 9mm semi-automatic pistol in the waistband of his pants, and the gun was seized when he was arrested, the plea agreement said.
Investigators found 124 images and 18 videos of child pornography on Kreitler’s laptop after the arrest, and he admitted to investigators that he viewed child porn. He also said he watched the porn to find out what happened to some of his patients, according to the plea agreement.
On Jan. 14, 2020, Kreitler started communicating with an undercover St. Louis County Police officer, who had created a fake online persona on the social media app “Grindr." The officer portrayed an adult male with the name, “Taboo Chad,” and Kreitler sent a private message to the fake account saying he had “porn you’d probably enjoy seeing,” the report said.
Kreitler and the officer then started communicating through the social media app “Wickr” and other internet-based forms of communication, the plea said.
Kreitler sent the undercover officer links to a storage website called “Mega,” and one link had about 841 pictures and 141 videos of child pornography, and another link had about four pictures and 90 videos of child pornography, according to the plea.
Also, Kreitler asked the officer about a fictitious 14-year-old child mentioned on the fake Grindr account, wanting to know if the officer and teen would be interested in a “three way.” Kreitler also suggested the officer perform and take pictures of sexual acts with the fake teen, the plea said.
Kreitler also has been charged with first-degree promoting child pornography, a class B felony, in St. Louis County Circuit Court. That charge is still pending and carries a penalty of five to 15 years in prison.