Former Mille Lacs County reserve deputy sentenced in child sex abuse material case

A former reserve deputy for a northern Minnesota county was sentenced Thursday to 20 months in prison for spreading child sexual abuse material via Snapchat. Tyler Pettit, from Isle, pleaded guilty in July to one county of disseminating pornographic work of a minor under the age of 14. Pettit was a volunteer, non-sworn reserve deputy for Mille Lacs County, and had also worked at a group home where children lived. Court documents say the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children alerted the sheriff's office in May 2024 that a Snapchat account tied to Pettit uploaded four videos showing boys as young as 8 being abused. He was arrested by Sheriff Kyle Burton, who said it was "important that it came from me, that as the sheriff, I'm going to hold you accountable." According to Burton, Pettit had passed background checks for both the group home and reserve deputy jobs. Pettit was also sentenced to five years of conditional release. If you know of a child who may have been a victim of exploitation, call the National Center for Missing or Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678 or visit the website . In: Mille Lacs County Sexual Abuse Child Abuse Featured Local Savings