Lincoln Man Sentenced for Receipt of Child Pornography

United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Kristopher C. Tibbs, 28, of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced on March 14, in Lincoln, Nebraska to five and a half years in prison by United States District Judge John M. Gerrard for receipt of child pornography.  After his release from prison, Tibbs will be required to serve a 5 year term of supervised release and be registered as a sex offender.

While conducting an operation in February of last year, investigators with the Lincoln Police Department were able to access child pornography images from computers that were using file sharing software publicly available on the Internet through Peer-to-Peer Network.  On three occasions, investigators were able to make a direct connection to a specific computer which was sharing images of child pornography.  Using computer programs, investigators were able to identify the IP address for that computer.  The Internet service provider indicated that the IP address was assigned to Tibbs.

A search warrant was executed at Tibbs’ residence.  When investigators examined Tibbs’ computer, they found digital images and over 170 videos depicting sexually explicit conduct of children under the age of 18.

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 Lincoln Police Department.