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Madelia man gets 25 years in prison

100 years probation for molesting children

Johnson

ST. JAMES — A 68-year-old Madelia man convicted of two counts of felony second-degree criminal sexual conduct and possessing pornographic work was sentenced to 25 years in prison in Watonwan County District Court Tuesday.

Leslie P. Johnson was sentenced to 300 months at the St. Cloud Correctional Facility and 100 years probation. He was credited with six years, four months served. The sentence is concurrent with a prior sentence of nearly nine months.

According to court documents, the Madelia Police Department received discs containing digital evidence obtained during a search warrant executed at Johnson’s home in June 2015. The evidence contained 423 images and 27 videos of an eight-year-old plus photos of the child playing in and around a lake; in various stages of disrobe, staged in different positions. Some of the photos showed Johnson abused children by spanking them until they cried, then hugging them.

On Oct. 15, 2015, Madelia Police talked with the 8-year-old’s parents and learned that the child stayed overnight at Johnson’s residence every other weekend for three months in 2011, when he was three years old. The parents said they were unaware of any sexual behavior by Johnson and positively identified him in photos shown by police.

Five more victims, all under age 13, who had been abused and photographed by Johnson at his home were identified, according to court documents.

Future court date for other cases have not yet been set.

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