Former Salinas teacher sentenced for child pornography
UPDATED: 4/18/2018 5:19 p.m. A former Salinas elementary school teacher was sentenced to five years in prison for possessing child pornography.
53-year-old Robert Krietzman of Watsonville pleaded guilty to possessing more than 600 images and videos of children engaging in masturbation, sexual intercourse with adult males or in bondage.
Santa Cruz Police detectives discovered the images in May of 2016 after serving a search warrant at Krietzman’s home.
Krietzman was a first grade teacher in Watsonville at the time the images were found on electronic devices at his home.
In addition to the prison term, Krietzman has been ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution plus five years of supervised release. He has been ordered to register as a sex offender and is is required to participate in sex offender treatment and counseling.
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Santa Cruz Police have arrested two men on child pornography charges. One of the men teaches first grade in Salinas.
Robert Krietzman of Watsonville and John Brookhouse from Scotts Valley were arrested at their homes Tuesday. Police say the men viewed and made child pornography available on a peer to peer network.
Krietzman teaches first grade at the Martin Luther King Jr. Academy in the Alisal School District.
“In the process of searching his home and car, detectives found a number of disturbing images of children in sexual acts,” said Joyce Blaschke with the Santa Cruz Police Department.
Police say the school district is cooperating in the investigation and Krietzman has since been placed on leave.
“We took immediate action as far as ensuring the safety of our students and making sure that they were not in any sort of danger,” said Marcos Cabrera with the Alisal Union School District.
Investigators say at this point, none of the child pornography images appear to be related to the school. Detectives are reviewing Krietzman’s personal and school work computers.
“We just want parents to know that we take every precaution to ensure the safety of each and everyone of our students,” said Cabrera.
Police say Brookhouse, who was convicted in 1991 for possession of child pornography in the state of Florida, confessed to both downloading and sharing child pornography on the network. Detectives seized a number of computers and external drives that were allegedly used to download pornographic images.
Both men were booked into Santa Cruz County Jail. Police say it’s a reminder to talk with your kids about internet safety.
“Find out what they are doing online and what they are doing off line. Check in with them about their activities and who they’re interacting with,” said Blaschke.
The investigation and arrests were carried out by members of the Santa Cruz Police Department, Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Scotts Valley Police Department
Investigators encourage parents who suspect anything inappropriate to notify the Salinas Police Department and/or Alisal School District officials. Case 16S-03193
