A Plymouth man has been sentenced to more than 10 years for possessing explicit images of a 17-year-old in a plea agreement that led to the dismissal of many sex assault charges that were based on allegations from numerous women.
Bjorn B. Iverson, 38, will serve about eight years in prison and the balance of his 10½-year term on supervised release after admitting Monday in Hennepin County District Court to nine counts of possessing pornographic videos and photos of the teenager. He also must register as a predatory offender.
Prosecutors alleged that Iverson used alcohol and drugs to prey on the teen and at least eight women.
Iverson's attorney, Patrick Cotter, said Tuesday his client spoke briefly during sentencing and admitted solely to the pornography counts involving the teen and apologized.
As for the assault allegations, Cotter said, "We vigorously fought this case, and it resulted in the dismissal of all the criminal sexual conduct charges. They were dismissed for a reason: They lacked the evidence."
One of his accusers, Karen Juchemich, who volunteered to be identified by the Star Tribune, said she and the other women "were very disappointed that they were dismissed. It felt like he was getting off without being held accountable for all the things he did to us."
Juchemich said that prosecutor Jason Heaser helped her and the others understand the practical side of how the cases played out.
"As Jason had shared with us, it can be very hard to get guilty verdicts in cases like ours, so we were grateful that he was still being guaranteed prison time and that we had the opportunity to share our stories with the judge," she said.
