‘Town Crier’ – Briefs From the Region (2) – 9/10/19

Former Montana-based federal agent sentenced for child pornography

On Friday, Sept. 6, Shawn Thomas Conrad of Billings was sentenced to seven years in prison for possession of child pornography. Investigations into the former federal agent’s conduct began when he had tried videotaping a 12-year-old girl in a shower in 2018 while working for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service—the evidence of which was discovered on a hard drive he had mistakenly left behind in a seized agency vehicle, despite data wiping programs Conrad had installed on the device, along with other subsequently seized digital storage units. Conrad will undergo 20 years of supervised release pending the closure of his prison time, and was accused of using his position of authority to gain trust and groom children for sexual acts, reports the Billings Gazette, also knowing intimately how to minimize consequences of his actions should he be caught.