The Latest: Prosecutor: boy's parents turned grief to hope
Minnesota's chief federal prosecutor is urging other people to draw on the example set by the parents of 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling, whose kidnapping remained unsolved for 27 years until this summer.
U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger said in a statement afterward that Patty and Jerry Wetterling transformed their grief into hope, dedicating their lives to helping other parents of missing children bring their kids home.
Luger notes that the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children last year received more than 4 million online tips of suspected child sexual exploitation.
Patty Wetterling and other members of her family spoke in federal court in Minneapolis on Monday before 53-year-old Danny Heinrich was sentenced to 20 years in prison under a plea bargain.
Standing in federal court on Monday, the Annandale man admitted he had committed a heinous and unforgivable act, and apologized to the Wetterling family for what he took away from them.
Authorities can seek to have Heinrich civilly committed as a dangerous sex offender when he completes his prison sentence.
A Minnesota man who recently confessed to abducting, sexually assaulting and killing 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling 27 years ago has been sentenced to 20 years in prison on a child pornography charge.
The plea bargain calls for a sentence of 20 years, the maximum the law allows on the child pornography count.