(KNOX) – A 24-year-old Moorhead man is facing 10 felony counts of possessing child sexual abuse material, as investigators say a forensic examination of his phone found dozens of videos and images depicting the sexual assault of young children.
Yousif Wali was charged Monday in Clay County District Court. Each count carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and $10,000 fine.
The investigation began May 29 when a Moorhead Detective received a cyber tip through the Internet Crimes Against Children task force. The tip flagged potential child sexual abuse material linked to two Google accounts, three phone numbers, and a potential suspect.
Investigators, that includes the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, subpoenaed Google and traced one of the accounts to Wali. Records and a prior police contact confirmed his address at a residence on 37th Avenue South.
A search warrant was signed June 16 and executed June 18. Officers stopped Wali as he was leaving his residence and seized a smartphone from his vehicle and detectives simultaneously searched his home.
After being read his Miranda rights, Wali agreed to speak with investigators. He said he had received some child sexual abuse material two or three years ago through the messaging app Telegram. He suggested the files may have been transferred when he switched phones. He acknowledged receiving a notice from Google that child sexual abuse material had been detected on his account and that his account had been banned. He has denied viewing the material for sexual purposes.
There were 34 videos and 5 images of child sexual abuse material found on his phone. The files had uploaded dates spanning from March 21 to May 4, 2026.
Investigators also noted that after the search warrant was served, someone logged into Wali’s Telegram account remotely and deleted numerous message threads and messaging groups.
Wali was booked into the Clay County Jail. He made his first court appearance on June 30.
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