Erik Hjemdahl-Monsen, 46, of Springville, Concord, Erie County, New York, United States worked at John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital in Buffalo, Erie County. He uses an iPhone and had an account on the Kik application.
Designed by Shepley Bulfinch and built by Turner Construction, Oishei Children’s Hospital opened on November 10, 2017. It was named after the late businessman John R. Oishei, who was born and raised in Buffalo.
On September 23, 2010, Hjemdahl-Monsen was licensed as a registered nurse. In December 2022, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children alerted the New York State Police about an image of child pornography that had been uploaded on Kik, which the NYSP traced to Hjemdahl-Monsen.
On September 21, 2023, investigators executed a search warrant at Hjemdahl-Monsen’s residence in Springville. They seized 10 items and found a video containing child pornography video on his iPhone that appeared to be stored on the device since 2020.
On September 29, 2023, the NYSP alerted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and turned over the 10 items seized during the search warrant. Several more videos containing child pornography were found on Hjemdahl-Monsen’s iPhone.
On October 3, 2023, Hjemdahl-Monsen was arrested and charged with possession and distribution of child pornography. Later that day, he made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael J. Roemer.
The NYSP notified Oishei Children’s Hospital of the nature of the investigation into Hjemdahl-Monsen and the hospital terminated him shortly after his arrest. He will attend a detention hearing at 11:00 a.m. on October 5, 2023.
CONAN Daily 