A Breckenridge man pleaded guilty Monday, April 24, to charges related to the sharing of videos featuring child pornography.

Clint Ketchum, 43, pleaded guilty to charges of sexual exploitation of a child with intent to distribute, a Class 3 felony, and nonconsensual sexual contact, a Class 1 misdemeanor. Ketchum is scheduled to be sentenced June 26.

The 5th Judicial District Attorney’s Office agreed to dismiss a charge of sexual exploitation of a child, a felony, as part of the agreement in exchange for Ketchum pleading guilty to the nonconsensual sexual contact charge. Ketchum waived a factual basis for that lesser charge, which means he pleaded guilty to it while acknowledging that there was no contact alleged in the case.

Under a plea deal, Ketchum is expected to receive a deferred judgment and sentence on the felony charge, which carries a sentence of anywhere from two to 24 years in prison. Ketchum would be placed on probation for four years under the terms of the deferred judgment and sentence, Judge Reed Owens said. Should he remain in good standing through the probationary period, the charges will be dismissed, but if he violates probation, he could face prison time, Owens said.

On the misdemeanor charge, the agreement with the District Attorney’s Office stipulates Ketchum will receive probation rather than jail time, Owens said. Should Ketchum violate probation, he could face up to 364 days in the county jail, he said.

In late 2021, the Colorado Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in Colorado Springs received two tips involving child pornography on Kik Messenger that were later assigned to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office, according to an affidavit in support of an arrest warrant.

The Kik Messenger account “mlando78” shared three videos of suspected child pornography on Oct. 29, 2020, with another user with an IP address out of Breckenridge and five videos of suspected child pornography a year later to a different IP address in Denver, the affidavit states.

Both IP addresses were traced to a Comcast account in Frisco with the user ID of “ClintKetchum” and investigators eventually linked Ketchum with the property address, phone number and email linked to the Comcast account, according to the affidavit.

Investigators eventually received a search warrant for all computers, hard drives, routers, other electronic devices and all forms of digital media at Ketchum’s residence and executed that warrant on Jan. 31, 2022, according to the affidavit. An Apple iPhone was reportedly seized.

Ketchum was made aware that law enforcement had body camera’s running during the search, the affidavit states, and the camera footage captured statements he made to law enforcement officers.

“They were just some pictures some guy sent me online. I’m not into anything. It was just something I was looking at,” Ketchum said, according to the affidavit. “I can’t believe how stupid I am for this. … I apologize that you guys are here.”