A former City of Storm Lake employee has pleaded guilty to child pornography charges in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, 52-year-old Brian Oakleaf, who previously served as Storm Lake’s finance director, submitted his guilty plea Tuesday to two counts of possession of child pornography. Authorities say they initiated an investigation into an online file-sharing program in May 2024 and identified Oakleaf as a suspect. In July 2024, law enforcement executed search warrants at Oakleaf’s home and his place of employment at Storm Lake City Hall, recovering at least one video longer than 90 minutes and over 20,000 images of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), which included depictions of toddlers, bondage, and sadistic and masochistic conduct. Oakleaf’s sentencing before a U.S. district court judge is pending preparation of a presentencing report, and he remains in custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. Oakleaf faces up to 40 years in federal prison, $500,000 in fines, and at least five years of supervised release if his term is completed. There is no parole in the federal justice system. The case was filed as a joint effort through Project Safe Childhood that was created to directly combat the growing instances of child sex abuse materials found online. The investigation was primarily conducted by agents from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI).
