NEW BADEN, Ill. — A judge sentenced a former New Baden teacher and girls sports coach for soliciting explicit photos from a 13-year-old on Snapchat.
According to a press release from the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Illinois, Jonathan Villmer has been sentenced to 10 years behind bars after admitting months ago to asking for photos and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of a child from his victims.
The judge also required Villmer to register as a sex offender and serve an additional seven years on supervised release after his decade-long prison term.
Prosecutors initially charged Villmer in August 2023 with soliciting child sexual abuse material. Before his charge, Villmer, 26, taught first grade at New Baden Elementary School and coached girls teams from Wesclin Community Unit School District 3.
Last year, the Carmi Police Department conducted a separate, unrelated investigation when it found Villmer was connected to a Snapchat account used to ask for child sexual abuse material from a minor, prosecutors said. Law enforcement used IP address records associated with the Snapchat account to connect it to Villmer.
According to previous court documents, police searched Villmer’s Snapchat account and found explicit conversations between him and a 13-year-old. Villmer asked the child for the “sexiest images,” and talked about having sex and taking the child's virginity. Police also found more sexually explicit conversations between Villmer and other minors on his Snapchat account.
On Aug. 18, 2023, police searched Villmer’s home in New Baden where they found two cell phones and other electronic devices. Police arrested Villmer at his home shortly after the search.
“We know child predators lurk in our communities, but it’s especially disturbing when a former first-grade teacher and coach admits to asking minors for inappropriate images,” U.S. Attorney Rachelle Aud Crowe said in a statement. “I highly commend the several law enforcement departments who contributed to this investigation and identified an extremely dangerous individual working directly with minors.”
“As a teacher and coach, the defendant was entrusted to educate and mentor youth, yet instead he preyed on and exploited his young victims’ vulnerabilities,” said Crowe. “His predatory behaviors expressed a complete disregard for protecting children but rather abusing them. I’m thankful to the law enforcement agencies who worked to put this dangerous offender in federal prison.”
The Department of Homeland Security Investigations Task Force handled the investigation with help from the New Baden and Carmi Police departments and the Jefferson County and Clinton County Sheriff’s departments.
Anyone who believes they have information related to this case may contact Homeland Security Investigations Task Force Officer Bobby Wallace at the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office by calling 618-244-8004.
Resources for child abuse victims:
- Call the 24-hour Child Abuse Hotline at 800-25-ABUSE (800-252-2873) if you suspect that a child has been harmed or is at risk of being harmed by abuse or neglect. If you believe a child is in immediate danger of harm, call 911 first.
- If you suspect child abuse, call the Missouri Hotline number at 1-800-392-3738. The team is available to help 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you are hearing or speech impaired, call Relay Missouri at 1-800-735-2466 (voice) or 1-800-735-2966 (text). If you are mandated by law to report child abuse and neglect, you can make a report online here.
- To report a crime to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, visit their CyberTipline online.
