LAKE HAVASU CITY – A Lake Havasu City man who killed his best friend a dozen years ago may be returning to the Arizona Department of Corrections. Johnathan Kroll, 37, is newly charged in a case involving child pornography, or what law enforcement officials now call child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
A police report indicated that an electronic service provider reported suspicious activity to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children seven months ago. The tip was forwarded to the Arizona Internet Crimes Against Children task force and that entity notified Lake Havasu police before Kroll was arrested on October 2.
The Lake Havasu City police report indicated investigation revealed that Kroll uploaded child porn videos three times on March 15, and three more videos on April 4. One or more of the videos was reportedly shared with another unidentified party.
The report said Kroll provided verbal and written confessions when interviewed by police. While he was arrested on six counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, the Mohave County Attorney’s Office reduced the mix to five charges since the same video was downloaded twice.
Arizona law requires consecutive sentences and punishment of 10 to 24 years in prison for each exploitation related conviction.
Kroll was previously handed an eight-year prison term for stabbing to death his best friend, Brandon Bonnett, 23, at the home they shared in the 1000 block of Rolling Hills Drive in October, 2013. The men reportedly quarreled over Kroll’s relationship with Bonnett’s 19-year-old sister, who was knife slashed while trying to intervene in the deadly fight involving her boyfriend and brother.
Kroll was released from custody to community supervision in 2020, after completing six of his eight-year prison sentence.