Florida man indicted for sexual battery on children could face death penalty: ‘True evil’

Death penalty to be pursued in child sex crime investigation

On Wednesday, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced that the state will seek the death penalty against a man who is accused of sexually battering children. Kylie Jones reports.

BROOKSVILLE, Fla. - On Wednesday, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced that the state will seek the death penalty against a man who is accused of sexually battering children.

On Monday, Nathan Holmberg was indicted by a grand jury for child sex battery.

"This evidence shows that he engaged in sex abuse with a three-year-old. Not only did he engage in these horrific physical acts, but he also filmed them. There are at least five or six victims out there," Uthmeier stated.

The backstory:

A good Samaritan reported seeing child porn with a very young child on Nathan Holmberg's cellphone and notified authorities.

Detectives say that Holmberg worked as a babysitter or a nanny during the time of the alleged abuse.

Florida Attorney General Uthmeier press conference

Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier and the Hernando County sheriff give an update on a man indicted for child sex abuse.

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Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis said he believes that over 50 of the pictures and videos contained capital sexual battery acts on three of the eight victims. He says that over 80 of the pictures and images showed the suspect touching the five other victims in an inappropriate way.

The victims are between the ages of three and 10. A majority are between four and eight years old. 30 additional devices were found at Holmberg’s home.

"The evidence shows hundreds of files of photos and videos of other child pornographic images," Uthmeier said. "Again, this is not an individual who can be rehabilitated. It is someone who needs to face the ultimate form of justice."

On Wednesday, Nienhuis said detectives are still combing through around 650 photos and videos of child pornography on Holmberg's devices.

Dig deeper:

Holmberg was arrested in 2012 in the Jacksonville area for a similar offense. Detectives say that the arrest affidavit matched what they saw on the video that the good Samaritan brought in.

Courtesy: Hernando County Sheriff's Office

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He was arrested for capital sexual battery at the time, but he ended up pleading guilty to child abuse. He was sentenced to five years probation.

He was not designated as a sexual offender or a sexual predator.

Why you should care:

According to a Florida law that was passed in 2023, prosecutors can now pursue the death penalty in capital sexual battery cases involving a child under 12 years old.

"Crimes like this, against young children, where you take their innocence, you take their childhood away from them, these horrific acts deserve the ultimate form of justice," Uthmeier said. "So, we will be doing everything we can legally to send him to meet his maker."

What's next:

The state attorney general added that there are additional victims and other charges will likely be filed in other counties.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office.