SANDPOINT — A man guilty of sexual child abuse has been sentenced to serve eight years in prison.  

Edwin Brown, 67, was handed down the punishment during a Feb. 17 sentencing, where he will serve eight years in prison — two years indeterminate, six years determinate.  

When an individual is sentenced to determinate prison time, they are required to serve that term. If they are eligible after that time, the individual may be granted parole. If they are not eligible for parole, they will be required to serve indeterminate time, if given any.     

Brown accepted a pretrial settlement Dec. 16, 2025, pleading guilty to one count of sexual child abuse. As a result of the plea, charges of child sexual exploitation and destruction of evidence were dismissed.  

County law enforcement became aware of the alleged abuse when the victim’s mother called to report that Brown had been sexually abusing her 13-year-old daughter through video chat.   

A probable cause affidavit indicates the victim, who has a disability, was about 11 when she first had cellular contact with Brown. The two attended the same physical therapy, as Brown suffered a spinal cord injury that put him in a wheelchair.   

Brown video chatted and called the girl regularly over the span of three years, according to court documents, and allegedly exposed himself and exhibited sexual behavior while on video calls.  

During a police interview that was summarized in a probable cause affidavit, Brown said that he “did not have any real explanations for his behaviors,” and that “he felt Satan had taken over and made him do those things.”  

In that same interview, Brown told county officials that he was aware of the victim’s disabilities.  

At the time police obtained a search warrant for several pieces of Brown’s property that related to the abuse, Brown allegedly told officials that he burned any evidence because he knew he was “in serious trouble” and the first thing that “came to his mind was to clean the house.”