A federal jury in Miami has found Michael Karl Geilenfeld, a 73-year-old man from Colorado, guilty of sexually abusing several boys at an orphanage he founded in Haiti. The verdict was reached after evidence and testimonies were presented during the trial.
Geilenfeld established St. Joseph’s Home for Boys in 1985, a facility meant to care for orphaned and vulnerable children in Haiti. Over more than two decades, he traveled between the United States and Haiti, where he engaged in illicit sexual conduct with the boys under his care.
The jury convicted Geilenfeld on one count of traveling for illicit sexual conduct and six counts related to specific victims abused between 2005 and 2010. Each victim testified about their experiences of abuse by Geilenfeld. Four additional victims also provided testimony despite not being part of the charged offenses.
Geilenfeld is scheduled for sentencing on May 5 and could face up to 30 years in prison for each of the seven counts. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence based on U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations Miami along with the FBI Miami Field Office. The prosecution team includes Assistant U.S. Attorney Lacee Monk from the Southern District of Florida, as well as Trial Attorneys Jessica L. Urban and Eduardo Palomo from the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS).
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to address child sexual exploitation and abuse nationwide.
Further details about this case can be accessed through the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida using case number 24-cr-20008.