THUNDER BAY—- A Thunder Bay man has been sentenced to four years after pleading guilty to several charges relating to child pornography and indecent acts.
Scott Giertuga, 56, appeared in a Thunder Bay courtroom last week where he pleaded guilty to charges of making child pornography available, possession of child pornography, and indecent acts.
According to court documents, in September 2020 the Thunder Bay Police Service cyber-tip line received reports of a local internet user uploading images consistent with child pornography to a social media website.The investigation found material was first uploaded in 2016 and was available until 2020 when the account was terminated.
It was determined the IP address linked to the account belonged to Giertuga at a residence the 500 block of Leslie Avenue.
Giertuga was previously investigated in 2014 for suspicion of uploading images consistent with child pornography to an email account, but a search of his electronic device on consent at the time did not uncover any materials.
In January 2021, investigators with the Thunder Bay Police Service executed a search warrant of Leslie Avenue residence and seized several electronic devices.
Examination of the devices found approximately 1,080 videos and images believed to be child pornography, as well as several hundred images and videos of Giertuga naked and exposing his genitals in public areas, including baseball fields, parks, playgrounds, and hotel hallways.
As part of a joint submission presented to Justice Belda Perez, Giertuga was sentenced to four years.
With pre-sentence custody credited at 1,257 days, Giertuga will remain in custody for another 197 days. Following his release, Giertuga will be subject to three-years probation.
Giertuga will also be required to register with the Sex Offender Information Registry for 20 years, will be prohibited from being around or in areas where individuals under the age of 16-years-old are anticipated to be, have no contact with anyone under the age of 16-years-old unless under supervision by someone designated by the court, restrictions on internet use, and is required to submit a DNA sample.
