Iowa professor who lived 'double life' distributing meth, filmed child porn sentenced to 25 years

Former University of Iowa School of Music professor John Muriello, who prosecutors claim led a double life as a criminal, has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison.

The 66-year-old was initially arrested for meth distribution leading to a death but when police searched his home and fielded an anonymous tip, they uncovered thousands of child pornography files.

Muriello is sentenced to 20 years in prison for possessing child pornography and 25 years for conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine, leading to death. The prison terms will be served concurrently, meaning Muriello will spend 25 years in federal prison.

Muriello taught classes at the UI while supplying meth to co-conspirator

When Muriello was still teaching in 2020 at the University of Iowa's School of Music, he and Eric Hojka formed a meth distribution operation within Iowa City, court documents said.

A separate investigation determined Muriello and Hojka were getting their methamphetamine from California.

A 2021 distress call put the pair firmly on police radar.

Hojka phoned 911 in May of that year to report an unconscious person at his Iowa City apartment. First responders could not revive the person, who was transported to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and was pronounced dead.

An autopsy revealed the victim had ingested methamphetamine provided by Hojka, who received it from Muriello. According to an affidavit, a recent needle puncture mark was found on the deceased's body.

A police search of Muriello’s home in May of 2021 uncovered methamphetamine, needles and marijuana as well as a substantial amount of child pornography.

According to a release from the UI, the university placed Muriello on administrative leave that same day.

Muriello officially retired on July 1, 2022, the university said, automatically granting Muriello emeritus status. The distinction is given when a faculty member retires after working at the university for a “significant period of time,” defined as 10 or more years of “service” to the university, according to UI policy.

The university can also revoke Emeritus status at any time, per the policy and a “conviction of a federal offense would be considered good cause,” the school said in a release last August.

The university revoked Muriello's emeritus status in September 2022.

Anonymous tip sparked investigation in 2020

Court documents say the University of Iowa received an email from an anonymous parent of a UI freshman in April 2020.

The parent claimed their child attended a party at Muriello’s Iowa City residence where the professor allegedly provided meth and used gamma-hydroxybutyrate, a common date rape drug, to “drug partygoers to have sex with them."

The email accused Muriello of rounding up younger individuals and teens as young as 17 to record sex acts. The writer also claimed the professor owned an "extensive" child porn collection on multiple devices. The email also said Muriello was using Zoom to perform the sex acts live.

According to court documents, an FBI special agent filed a report from a 19-year-old UI student in September 2020 who developed a relationship with Muriello. The warrant said Muriello supplied this student with meth and had nonconsensual sex with the student multiple times.

Prosecution said Muriello led a ‘double life’ and pointed to evidence of Satanic imagery

A search warrant uncovered 12,000 media files on Muriello’s MacBook, including thousands of photos and more than 1,300 videos of children. Several hundred of those videos showed the children, some under the age of two, engaged in sex acts.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children identified 165 children in files recovered from Muriello's computer.

Prosecutors argued that Muriello led a double life — one as a professor, actor, and singer, the other as someone who purchased, distributed and used methamphetamine and possessed more than 10,000 pictures of children, many inappropriate.

“Muriello’s family did not know the depth of his depravity or the despicable nature of his conduct,” the prosecution wrote in its sentencing memorandum.

Letters of support from people close to Muriello indicate this double life, the prosecution said, His sister-in-law said he was incapable of such crimes and she instantly felt his kindness and joy when she met him more than 40 years ago.

In a few recovered images, the prosecution argued that Muriello had aligned with the devil, using the well-known sign of the devil “666” for passwords and even photographed himself with Satanic symbols on his body.

In the same photo, Muriello identified himself as a “pedo” and referred to his genitals. The prosecution argued this message indicated “he proudly advertised himself as a pedophile.”

Defense cites Muriello's religion, lack of criminal history

Muriello’s lawyers countered, saying the satanic imagery should not be used as evidence against Muriello. The defense believed the government assumed an “aggravating circumstance,” and the prosecution assumed his religion, violating his first amendment rights.

Instead, the defense argued the only relevant use of the symbols and images is to “indicate how far [Muriello] had fallen into the grips of mental illness and drug abuse and how far he has come since that time,” they wrote in the sentencing memorandum.

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Muriello's lawyers argued a 25-year prison term was longer than necessary. They said even the lesser 20-year sentence was a “very long time” for him, who is 66, has no other criminal history, and is of “ill health.” The defense said during sentencing that Muriello knows he will likely die in prison and has accepted and even “signed up” for it by cooperating with the government’s investigation and accepting personal accountability.

The defense argued that the deceased victim in Hojka's home suffered from cardiovascular disease, leading to a quicker death from methamphetamine. They argued that “meth actual is not more dangerous than meth mixture” and charges for the same crime with other drugs, including fentanyl and heroin, had lesser punishments than for “ice,” crystal methamphetamine.

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Muriello is ordered to pay a $50,000 fine, $12,000 in restitution and $22,000 in assessments. Muriello’s home on the east side of Iowa City, where he held parties and was said to have exchanged meth for sex, was also forfeited.

Muriello will be more than 90 years old when he completes his sentence. There is no parole in the federal prison system. Muriello would also be subject to a five-year-long “supervised release” upon completion of his prison term, subject to several conditions, including separate sex-offense-specific and drug treatment programs.

Hojka pled guilty in May 2022 to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams and more of meth resulting in a death, the Press-Citizen reported. Hojka was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison in September.

Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on Twitter @ryanhansen01.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Former Iowa professor John Muriello sentenced 25 years for child porn, meth