New footage shows Aaron Hjermstad's 2021 Idaho stop. Troopers seized devices that led to a probe; FOX 9 says it involved over 120 children. Hjermstad pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting 12 children and was sentenced to life, with parole possible after 30 years.
Hjermstad had been found guilty in four Minnesota cases on Nov. 18, 2021, and was awaiting sentencing when he left the state. Idaho State Police said he was arrested near Idaho Falls on a fugitive warrant on Nov. 30. A trooper later testified that the stop followed an improperly signaled lane change and that he found 27 memory cards, multiple laptops, court papers and a sheet with roughly 200 children's names.
By September 2024, Hennepin County prosecutors said the Idaho evidence contained thousands of videos depicting Hjermstad sexually assaulting additional children. A grand jury indicted him that year on 12 first-degree criminal sexual conduct counts involving 12 children, all under 13 at the time; the prosecution was separate from his earlier cases, for which he received a 144-month sentence in 2022. He must register as a predatory offender and would remain on conditional release for life if released.
