Man Sentenced To 37 Years In Federal Prison For Producing And Possessing Child Pornography

CHICAGO (CBS) - A Chicago man was sentenced to 37 years in federal prison fr producing and possessing thousands of photographs and videos of child pornography.

According to the U. S. Attorney's Office of the Northern District of Illinois, 62-year-old Scott Reskey possessed more than 400,000 images and more than 1,400 videos of child pornography on his laptop and other devices.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says Reskey also groomed and sexually abused a child under the age of ten and say on more than one occasion, Reskey directed the girl to engage in sex acts with him while he filmed it.

Reskey pleaded guilty last year to one count of child pornography and one count of possession of pornography.

U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly sentenced Reskey to 25 years on the production charge and a consecutive 12 years on the possession charge for the total sentence of 37 years.

"Reskey's offense conduct is morally abhorrent and among the most serious child pornography offenses imaginable," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Grayson Walker. "The case against Reskey arose from a covert federal investigation of an online community that sent and received child pornography via a website called 'PlayPen.' Reskey accessed the site using the name 'peanuty123.' In addition to the images and videos, authorities recovered from Reskey's laptop a document entitled 'The Pedophile's Handbook.' The handbook spans more than 500 pages and explains how to groom and abuse minors."

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Reskey was arrested in February 2017. Authorities were able to identify hundreds of children who were exploited in the images and videos. Dozens of those victims submitted statements to the Court in advance of the sentencing, detailing the harm caused by the production, distribution, and possession of their images.