Minneapolis (KROC AM News) - Two Minnesota men have received lengthy federal prison sentences for separate child pornography convictions.

A 40-year sentence has been given to 43-year-old Michael Carlos Mitchell of Minnetonka. He was charged with using a young child to produce large amounts of child porn. According to the U.S. Attorney’s office in Minneapolis, Mitchell “created hundreds of videos and thousands of images of himself sexually abusing a child under the age of 10 years old.”

A 25-year sentence has been handed down in the case of 33-year-old Marty Keith Larson of Keewatin. Prosecutors say he “created sexual abuse images of a minor under the age of 10 and distributed them using Kik Messenger application.”

U.S. Attorney (Minnesota) Erica H. MacDonald said, “We have seen a dramatic uptick in the number of cases involving the sexual abuse of minors. I am committed to using every available resource to combat this disturbing trend. One such resource is the Project Safe Childhood initiative which brings together child protection experts nationwide that are laser focused on bringing these predators to justice.”

MacDonald adds, “These cases were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.”

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