A man from San Diego County discovered with more than one million images and 25,000 videos of child pornography was sentenced Monday, the U.S. Attorney's Office confirmed.
After pleading guilty to receipt of images of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, 55-year-old Robert Lee Talnadge received six years in federal prison. According to prosecutors, investigators found an Internet Protocol address with files of child pornography connected to his home address.
The files discovered were widely available for sharing through a peer-to-peer file network on three separate occasions, prosecutors said. Similar sharing programs are widely used to share music and movies.
Federal agents searched Talnadge's home in May 2016, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Computers and other digital devices were seized that held a large volume of child pornography.
While imposing the sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Miller described the gravity of the offense.
“Possession and receipt of child pornography is a heinous offense because it buttresses and perpetuates the demand for this type of product," Miller said, in a statement. "It preys upon the most vulnerable in our society and does so in a shockingly evil way.”
Prosecutors said the "massive amount of material" in Talnadge's possession was an aggravating factor.
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Once Talnadge is released from custody, the U.S. Attorney's Office said he will be under supervision for a decade. During that time, he will not be able to use the Internet except on a monitored device. Talnadge will also be prohibited from having unsupervised contact with minors.
This crime was investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations and the Child Exploitation Group, which is part of the San Diego Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, prosecutors said.
“These crimes have a devastating impact on the young victims," David Shaw said, Special Agent in Charge of HSI in San Diego, in a statement.
Shaw said the HSI will keep working to pursue those who exchange child pornography and hold suspects accountable.
