A Oceanside man who filmed himself performing sexual acts with young boys and girls was sentenced Monday to 24 years and six months in prison.
Michael Galyen, 51, told the parents of his victims that he was a professional surfing and skateboarding instructor. He then filmed the sexual acts he committed with children as young as six years old, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in San Diego.
Authorities were able to obtain a warrant after they received a tip from MySpace that Galyen had uploaded child pornography to an account registered to his name. Agents took several computers and hard drives from Galyen's apartment.
Investigators with the Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory found thousands of images of child pornography with children ranging in age from six to 12 years old.
In one instance, Galyen admitted to secretly record himself engaging in a sex act with a 12-year-old boy, the office's release stated.
Prior to his arrest, he was convicted of several acts of sex offenses against children while being registered as a sex offender. In 1994, he was convicted for pressing a vibrating object against the groin of a 9-year-old girl. Later that year, he was also convicted for sexually penetrating a girl under 13-years-old. These crimes were committed in Illinois.
After the seizure in March of 2010, Galyen fled the state. Authorities eventually found him in his father's Kentucky home in November of 2010.
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On April 19, Galyen pleaded guilty to producing child pornography. In addition to his sentencing in federal prison, he will also serve 15 years of supervised release and will be registered as a sex offender.
