United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg and Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson announced that Scott N. O’Leary, 20, of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced on July 17, 2015 in Lincoln, Nebraska, to 144 months in prison by Senior United States District Judge Richard G. Kopf, for receipt of child pornography.  Additionally, once released from federal prison, O’Leary will be on supervised release for 15 years and will be required to register as a sex offender.

In August of 2010, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported a CyberTip to the Nebraska State Patrol regarding child pornography that had been uploaded to a social media account on the internet.  In June of 2012, another CyberTip was reported to the Nebraska State Patrol regarding child pornography that had been uploaded to another social media account.  Both of those CyberTips were associated with accounts listed under a female’s name.

Nebraska State Patrol investigators were able to trace the IP address of the computer associated with those accounts, and through further investigation, determined that Scott N. O’Leary was the suspected offender.

State Patrol investigators determined that O’Leary had created the fictional accounts in question.  O’Leary created several accounts on various websites and social networks under the female pseudonym.  He had used the fictional persona to communicate with young boys ranging in age from 12 to 17.  O’Leary solicited and received naked images from approximately half the boys he had been in contact with.  He also used bribes and threats to obtain images.

In addition to soliciting naked images from young boys, O’Leary uploaded images of at least one victim to a website known for the exchange of child pornography.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

This case was investigated by the Nebraska State Patrol with assistance from the Department of Homeland Security.  The case was jointly prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office.