GREAT FALLS – A retired Great Falls priest intends to plead guilty to a receipt of child pornography charge.
Court documents indicate that Lothar Konrad Krauth, a retired Catholic priest, plans to change his plea to guilty at a hearing next week.
Court documents state Homeland Security agents received a cyber report from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on Oct. 10, 2018.
The report showed a user with an IP address in Great Falls had uploaded an image of a nude prepubescent male child.
A summons to the internet service provider identified the IP address as assigned to Krauth, according to court documents.
Agents and Great Falls police executed a search warrant at Krauth’s residence on Oct. 26, 2018, where they seized approximately 20 items of electronic media including a desktop computer, external hard drives, six thumb drives, and more.
Court documents state a preliminary examination of the desktop computer identified approximately 400 images of child pornography while a subsequent analysis revealed thousands.
The images showed children as young as two or three years old, according to court documents.
Krauth was assigned to Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Great Falls from 1989 to 2014.
The change of plea hearing will take place Monday, April 8 at 11 a.m.
