A Colorado man was sentenced to 210 years in prison on Friday for sexually abusing numerous children at the Haitian orphanage he founded.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Michael Karl Geilenfeld, 73, most recently of Littleton, founded St. Joseph’s Home for Boys — a home for orphaned, impoverished, and otherwise vulnerable children in Haiti — in 1985 and operated it for more than two decades. During this time, Geilenfeld repeatedly traveled from the United States to Haiti, where he sexually abused the boys entrusted to his care. He also physically and emotionally abused the children in the home, including through physical assault and other forms of punishment.
In February 2025, a federal jury convicted Michael Karl Geilenfeld on one count of traveling in foreign commerce with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, and six counts of engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place between 2005 and 2010. Each of the six counts involved a different victim, all of whom were children at the time the offenses occurred.
During the trial, the six victims testified about the sexual abuse they endured at Geilenfeld’s hands and the lasting trauma it caused. Additional victims — now adults and not included in the charged offenses — also came forward to share similar experiences. Testimony from both victims and witnesses revealed not only the pattern of sexual abuse but also physical violence and psychological manipulation Geilenfeld used to control the children and maintain support for his organization.
“The defendant’s sustained sexual, physical, and emotional abuse of some of the most vulnerable children in the world is intolerable,” said Matthew Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “This prosecution demonstrates the Department’s commitment to securing justice for children harmed by criminals who travel abroad from the United States to commit their crimes. We thank our partners for working with us to ensure that the defendant can never harm another child.”
“This sentencing marks the end of a case built on the courage of survivors and the dedication of investigators,” said Assistant Director Jose A. Perez of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division. “For decades, Geilenfeld used his position of trust and access to exploit vulnerable children under the guise of humanitarian work. We are grateful to those victims who came forward to report their abuse. The FBI is committed to pursuing those who commit crimes against children, no matter where they occur or how long ago they were committed.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the FBI investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Jessica L. Urban and Eduardo Palomo of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Lacee Monk for the Southern District of Florida prosecuted the case.
