A 30-year-old western Nebraska man has been given seven years in prison for having thousands of images of child pornography on his home computer.

Thomas Schildt, of Gering, had made a deal with federal prosecutors who dropped one of the counts against him in exchange for his guilty plea to receiving and distributing child pornography.

Prosecutors said in a news release Monday that Schildt also must serve 10 years of supervised release after he leaves prison and must register as a sex offender.

Schildt was arrested on state charges last year, but they were dismissed as state prosecutors gave way to the federal case.