A Colorado man, Tyrell Forest Anderson, has pleaded guilty to producing and distributing child pornography, as well as transferring obscene material to a minor. The admission was made on March 27, as announced by U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme.
Anderson, aged 35, faces significant legal consequences for his actions. The legal proceedings have established that Anderson will face mandatory imprisonment ranging from a minimum of 15 years to a possible maximum of 30 years for producing child pornography. For distributing such material, he faces between 5 to 20 years of imprisonment, in addition to up to 10 years for transferring obscene material. He could also be subjected to a lifetime supervised release, fines up to $250,000 for each charge, and several thousands of dollars in special assessments. Under the terms stipulated in a plea agreement, Anderson’s total sentence is capped at 27 years.
The guilty plea hearing took place under the supervision of U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy Cavan, while sentencing will be determined by U.S. District Judge Susan Watters, who will take the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors into consideration. Anderson remains in detention while awaiting sentencing.
Court documents reveal disturbing details of Anderson's actions. In October 2022, a student from Gallatin High School, identified as Jane Doe 8, reported inappropriate communications with Anderson over Snapchat, which occurred two years prior when she was in eighth grade. Investigations conducted by the Bozeman Police Department uncovered Anderson’s solicitation of several minors, exchanging money, nicotine, or drugs for sexually explicit images from 2022 to 2024.
In February 2024, further incidents were reported involving young victims Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 7, and John Doe 1. Anderson engaged with Jane Doe 1, a 13-year-old from Yellowstone County, over Snapchat to solicit explicit images, asking her to meet for sexual activities. Conversations with Jane Doe 7 revealed Anderson’s indiscriminate distribution of inappropriate images, while with John Doe 1, Anderson shared videos of two juvenile females engaged in sexual acts, falsely claiming to be the male depicted in the video.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is handling the prosecution, with investigations spearheaded by the Bozeman Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations.