A now-former Isanti police officer has admitted to sending a lewd photo to his friend’s 13-year-old daughter through Snapchat and — after her friend saw it — telling her to say it was not his.
Nicholas Irvin Martell, 31, of Isanti, pleaded guilty Monday in Anoka County District Court to the sole count of distributing via electronic communication sexually explicit material to children.
Nicholas Irvin Martell (Courtesy of the Anoka County Sheriff’s Department)
As part of a plea agreement, Martell will be sentenced to one year and one day in prison, a term that’s an upward departure from state sentencing guidelines. His conditions of release were revoked and he was booked back into the Anoka County jail ahead of sentencing, which is set for May 5.
Martell was hired by the Isanti Police Department as an officer on Feb. 27, 2023, and is no longer employed with the city, a spokesperson said Tuesday. Martell was a St. Paul police officer for five years prior to joining Isanti police.
The criminal complaint says the girl’s father contacted law enforcement on Aug. 3 to report that his friend, Martell, had sent a penis photo to his daughter on July 27.
The father previously had reached out to Martell to help with her mental health because she was being bullied at school and had depression, according to the plea document.
Law enforcement interviewed the Isanti girl, who initially was reluctant to discuss her communications or relationship with Martell. She ultimately said that prior to sending the photo, Martell had asked her if she wanted to “see it.” After sending the photo, Martell asked the girl if she “liked it.”
The next day, Martell apologized for sending the photo and asked her not to tell anyone.
The girl sent Martell a message letting him know that one of her friends had seen the photo and that her friend was upset. Martell messaged the girl through Snapchat, telling her that she “needs to call me alone.”
She called Martell, who was on-duty, and her friend recorded the conversation. At the beginning of the call he asked if she was alone and then asked her to tell the friend that it was a “different Nick” who sent the photo.
Martell then pleaded with the girl, saying that he could go to prison because of the photo. The girl ended the call, telling him that her sister was coming upstairs. He later messaged the girl and asked when they could talk again.
Law enforcement examined the girl’s cellphone and Martell’s and requested search warrants from Snapchat to conduct a forensic analysis, “but from what was presently viewable,” the complaint states, “it is clear that the communication was far more extensive than initially disclosed by (the girl) both on the day the photograph was sent and in the days and months prior.”
‘Drunk, dumb, terrible decision’
The Anoka County Attorney’s Office is handling the case for Isanti County to avoid a perceived conflict of interest.
Prosecutors in October filed an intent to seek an aggravating sentence. As part of his plea, Martell acknowledged aggravating factors: the victim was “particularly vulnerable” because of her age and mental health, and his “abuse of authority” as a police officer.
The sentence is considered an upward departure from state sentencing guidelines because the presumptive sentence for Martell, who has no prior criminal offenses, is a stayed 15-month prison term.
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With his plea, a federal indictment relating to transfer of obscene material to a minor will not be pursued.
Martell’s attorney, Christa Groshek, said Tuesday that he was drunk when he sent the photo.
“I think what you need to understand is that he had challenges, and he decided to take the high road, and he decided to take responsibility for what he did, because running from it didn’t make any sense,” she said. “He’s sober now. He’s in counseling.”
Groshek added that Martell made “one stupid, drunk, dumb, terrible decision, and he paid for it dearly.”
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