DULUTH County (trfnews.i234.me) — In a disturbing case that has shaken the Duluth community, former climbing instructor Lucas Matthew Kramer, 45, has been sentenced to 6 ½ years in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession of child sexual abuse materials.
Kramer, who previously worked as a climbing coordinator at the University of Minnesota Duluth and served as president of the Duluth Climbers Coalition, was sentenced on March 19 by U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud. His role gave him direct access to children, sparking heightened concern among law enforcement, though no direct misconduct allegations toward youth he coached have surfaced.
The case began after two tips to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) from the Kik messaging app. Authorities connected the account “northernboy35” to Kramer’s University of Minnesota Duluth email address. In December 2023, Duluth Police’s Internet Crimes Against Children Unit raided his Lakeside home, seizing multiple devices.
Court records revealed investigators found around 85 files of graphic abuse material on four phones, including videos of assaults on children as young as toddlers, dated from May 2022 to December 2023. Kramer also used Telegram to request nude images from users as young as 10.
Although defense attorney Christopher Keyser argued Kramer did not possess a sexual attraction to children and was using the material as “social currency” online, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordan Sing rebutted this, stating Kramer had minimized the gravity of his crimes. Sing emphasized that Kramer had “carefully cultivated” a disturbing collection and engaged in “numerous sexually charged chats with children.”
Kramer was originally charged in State District Court in May 2023, but that case was dismissed in favor of a federal indictment. His final sentence includes five years of supervised release following prison, $10,000 restitution to an identified victim, and $7,600 in additional fines. He remains under home confinement until he reports to prison.
The psychological toll on the victims was also highlighted, with Sing stating that such crimes leave lasting trauma, often manifesting as PTSD, depression, and other lifelong struggles.
I’m Chris Harper, and I’m reporting for TRF News.
Did you know?
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Over 90% of children who are victims of sexual abuse know their abuser.
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Minnesota ranks in the top half of U.S. states for reported child exploitation cases.
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The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children receives millions of reports annually related to online child exploitation.