An Inver Grove Heights man was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison on Thursday for soliciting girls online to send him nude photos in exchange for money.

Samuel Eric Snell (Courtesy of the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office)

Samuel Eric Snell, 46, received his sentence in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis after pleading guilty to one count of production of child pornography in connection with receiving sexually explicit images from his victims in 2022. Other charges dismissed as part of an April plea agreement included two counts of persuading or coercing a minor to engage in prostitution.

Snell was indicted in December after an FBI Investigation with help from the Inver Grove Heights and Woodbury police departments.

Snell was a user of the gaming platform Discord, where he repeatedly solicited and received more than 400 images of nude girls, according to federal prosecutors.

Snell posed as a man in his early 20s over several years to approach a “multitude of children as young as 12 years old,” prosecutors said. “Snell victimized at least 10 children using his lies, coercing and manipulating the victims to produce graphic child pornography. Snell also met with minors in person on multiple occasions.”

Prosecutors said Snell’s victims were from several states and he selected them “for their vulnerabilities” and “took advantage of their youth, naivete and difficult life circumstances to feed his own craven and twisted sexual desires.”

Snell’s sentence includes 10 years of supervised probation following incarceration.

In handing down the sentence, Judge John Tunheim said, “This is a long sentence, but it is justified” primarily because Snell’s victims would suffer traumatic effects of his crimes “probably for the rest of their lives.”

Related Articles

Judge finds Current DJ’s stalker violated restraining order but not guilty due to mental illness

Other voices: Democrats can’t win another shutdown fight

Lawsuit filed over ICE detention of Omar Jamal, Somali advocate and Ramsey County sheriff civilian officer

Xcel Energy will pay $640M to settle claims from Denver-area wildfire that burned 1,000 structures

Noah Feldman: Blaming violence on free speech is a very old trick

By AAMER MADHANI

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump hosted Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, for talks Thursday at the White House in the latest sign of warming relations between the United States and the South Asian nuclear power.

Related Articles

Ex-FBI Director James Comey charged with making false statement, obstruction, AP source says

Trump says he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank

Trump signs executive order supporting proposed deal to put TikTok under US ownership

Trump officials urge nations to join effort to restrict asylum system as advocates brace for impact

Justice Department sues Minnesota, 5 other states in its quest for voter data

Sharif was among the top officials from eight Arab or Muslim countries who met with Trump on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly this week to discuss strategy on ending the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Ties have improved between the U.S. and Pakistan as Trump’s relationship with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, one of the Republican president’s closest with a world leader during his first term, has become strained over India’s increased purchases of discounted Russian oil after Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022. India and Pakistan are neighbors and fierce rivals.

Trump has dramatically raised tariffs on India for those oil purchases in an effort to put indirect economic pressure on Moscow.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and Pakistan reached a trade agreement in July that is expected to allow Washington to help develop Pakistan’s largely untapped oil reserves and lower tariffs for Islamabad.

Sharif arrived at the White House shortly before 5 p.m. as Trump was signing executive orders and talking with reporters. The meeting between the two leaders was closed to the media, with Pakistan’s delegation leaving the White House at 6:18 p.m.

Pakistan Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, left, and Gen. Syed Asim Munir wait for their meeting with President Donald Trump, in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Sharif has gained favor with Trump since publicly endorsing the American leader for a Nobel Peace Prize for his administration’s efforts this year at reducing tensions between Pakistan and India. India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire in May after U.S.-led talks to end the most serious military confrontation between the nuclear-armed rivals in decades.

Unlike Sharif, Modi has declined to indulge Trump’s attempt to claim credit for brokering the ceasefire.

That deal followed weeks of clashes, missile and drone strikes across their borders. The clashes were triggered by a massacre of tourists that India blames on Pakistan, which denies the charge.

Pakistan did split with Trump on his decision to carry out U.S. strikes in June on three Iranian nuclear facilities. Pakistan said the attack “constituted a serious violation of international law” as well as on the stature of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin, not pictured, at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China, Tuesday, Sept 2, 2025. (Maxim Shemetov/Pool Photo via AP)

Modi was recently photographed with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping during a security summit in Tianjin, in northern China. That led to a social media jab from Trump.

“Looks like we’ve lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest, China,” Trump wrote. “May they have a long and prosperous future together!”

But Trump has taken a warmer tack with Modi recently.

Last week, Trump offered hope that trade issues with India could be resolved.

“I am pleased to announce that India, and the United States of America, are continuing negotiations to address the Trade Barriers between our two Nations,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

“I look forward to speaking with my very good friend, Prime Minister Modi, in the upcoming weeks. I feel certain that there will be no difficulty in coming to a successful conclusion for both of our Great Countries!”

Trump hit India with tariffs up to 50% last month after imposing an additional 25% tariff on the country related to its purchases of Russian oil, which helps Moscow pay for its war in Ukraine.

Trump hosted Modi for White House talks in February.

By JOSH BOAK, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will put import taxes of 100% on pharmaceutical drugs, 50% on kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities, 30% on upholstered furniture and 25% on heavy trucks starting on Oct. 1.

Related Articles

Ex-FBI Director James Comey charged with making false statement, obstruction, AP source says

Trump says he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank

Trump signs executive order supporting proposed deal to put TikTok under US ownership

Trump officials urge nations to join effort to restrict asylum system as advocates brace for impact

Justice Department sues Minnesota, 5 other states in its quest for voter data

The posts on his social media site showed that Trump’s devotion to tariffs did not end with the trade frameworks and import taxes that were launched in August, a reflection of the president’s confidence that taxes will help to reduce the government’s budget deficit while increasing domestic manufacturing. But the additional tariffs risk intensifying inflation that is already elevated, as well as slowing economic growth, as employers getting acclimated to Trump’s previous import taxes grapple with new levels of uncertainty.

“We have begun to see goods prices showing through into higher inflation,” Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned in a recent news conference, adding that higher costs for goods account for “most” or potentially “all” of the increase in inflation levels this year.

Trump said on Truth Social that the pharmaceutical tariffs would not apply to companies that are building manufacturing plants in the United States, which he defined as either “breaking ground” or being “under construction.” It was unclear how the tariffs would apply to companies that already have factories in the U.S.

In 2024, America imported nearly $233 billion in pharmaceutical and medicinal products, according to the Census Bureau. The prospect of prices doubling for some medicines could send shock waves to voters as health care expenses, as well as the costs of Medicare and Medicaid, potentially increase.

Trump said that foreign manufacturers of furniture and cabinetry were flooding the United States with their products and that tariffs must be applied “for National Security and other reasons.” The new tariffs on cabinetry could further increase the costs for homebuilders at a time when many people seeking to buy a house feel priced out by the mix of housing shortages and high mortgage rates.

Trump said that foreign-made heavy trucks and parts are hurting domestic producers.

“Large Truck Company Manufacturers, such as Peterbilt, Kenworth, Freightliner, Mack Trucks, and others, will be protected from the onslaught of outside interruptions,” Trump posted.

Trump has long maintained that tariffs are the key to forcing companies to invest more in domestic factories. He has dismissed fears that importers would simply pass along much of the cost of the taxes to consumers and businesses in the form of higher prices.

The president continues to claim that inflation is no longer a challenge for the U.S. economy, despite evidence to the contrary. The consumer price index has increased 2.9% over the past 12 months, up from an annual pace of 2.3% in April, when Trump first launched a sweeping set of import taxes.

Nor is there evidence that the tariffs are creating factory jobs or more construction of manufacturing facilities. Since April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported that manufacturers cut 42,000 jobs and builders have downsized by 8,000.

“There’s no inflation,” Trump told reporters Thursday. “We’re having unbelievable success.”

Motorists take note — this weekend sections of westbound Interstate 94 and southbound Interstate 35E in St. Paul will be closed.

Starting at 10 p.m. on Friday westbound I-94 will be closed between John Ireland-35E and John Ireland Blvd through 5 a.m. on Monday. Also at this time southbound I-35E will be closed between University Ave. and 10th St.

Weekend traffic on westbound I-94 will be directed from northbound I-35E to westbound Minnesota Highway 36 to southbound Minnesota Highway 280. Traffic on southbound I-35E will be sent eastbound on I-94 to southbound U.S. Highway 52 to westbound I-494.

This closure is occurring in coordination with the I-94 in Minneapolis (Dartmouth Bridge) maintenance project. State officials also expect the Marion St. bridge over I-94 to reopen to traffic on Friday.

John Ireland Blvd. bridge replacement

Meanwhile, on Oct. 6 MnDOT begins a replacement of the John Ireland Blvd. bridge over I-94. This is one of nine bridge projects the state is doing in St. Paul through the fall of 2026.

This project will occur after the Twin Cities Marathon. The new design will feature sidewalk, biking and accessibility updates.

Lowry Tunnel in Minneapolis

And, MnDOT will be washing a summer’s worth of dirt, grime and debris from the I-94 Lowry Hill Tunnel on edge of downtown Minneapolis early next week.

Both directions of I-94 through the tunnel will be closed overnight Monday and Tuesday from 10 p.m. each night until 5 a.m. the following morning between Groveland Ave. and Minnesota Highway 55, for cleaning and repairs. Maintenance crews also will close ramps from northbound I-35W to westbound I-94; U.S. Highway 55/Hiawatha Ave. to eastbound I-94; and eastbound I-394 to eastbound I-94.

More information

For more information go to the MnDOT website or to check 511MN.org. 

Related Articles

St. Paul: West 7th Street reopened after sinkhole closed area for 4 months

Overnight closure of I-35W in Burnsville, lane reductions planned this weekend

The Fair is on: How to get there, what to know about Falcon Heights parking

States rethink a long-held practice of setting speed limits based on how fast drivers travel

I-35W in Burnsville will see road, ramp closures next week