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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Britt man jailed for criminal sexual conduct

Marshall Helmberger
Posted 1/17/25

REGIONAL— A Britt man remains in the St. Louis County Jail after his Dec. 20 arrest on three separate counts stemming from his use of a nine-year-old boy in a sexual performance or pornography …

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Britt man jailed for criminal sexual conduct

Posted

REGIONAL— A Britt man remains in the St. Louis County Jail after his Dec. 20 arrest on three separate counts stemming from his use of a nine-year-old boy in a sexual performance or pornography last April.
Matthew Steven Tourigny, age 38, faces a maximum sentence of 15 years and is currently being held on $300,000 bail.
According to the complaint, Tourigny posted a nude image of the nine-year-old boy, facing away from the camera, from a Snapchat account in the name of “mtourigny86,” which Tourigny later acknowledged was his.
The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office and the Lake Superior Forensic Technology and Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on Dec. 12 regarding a Snapchat user, “mtourigny86,” who had uploaded the image of the nine-year-old victim. Tourigny’s Snapchat account allegedly shared the photo with another account, “mt_ironmat,” and solicited a sexual encounter between mt_ironmat and the nine-year-old.
On Dec. 17, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Tourigny’s residence during which they seized numerous items, including multiple cell phones, a camera, and a laptop computer. During the search, Tourigny acknowledged ownership of the Snapchat account mtourigny86 and that he has a significant relationship with the nine-year-old boy. Officers found additional photographs of the nine-year-old, including some that were more explicit than the one sent over Snapchat. Tourigny did, however, acknowledge sending the more explicit images to other Snapchat users in exchange for their sending other, similar images, to him.
Tourigny assault in new context
Tourigny was the subject of a physical attack in Tower back in July, when four male juveniles lured him to town promising a hook-up with another young male. The juveniles then jumped him, hitting him with rods while posting the attack online, during which some of the juveniles accused Tourigny of being a sexual predator.
During the attack, Tourigny pleaded with the youths that he thought he was meeting a 24-year-old.
The attack was ultimately thwarted by the prompt actions of a Tower emergency responder, Steven Freshour, who drove off the attackers. The individuals involved were ultimately identified, arrested, and charged for the assault.